The Mockingjay Flies Again
by johnsokl
Summary: After the war of Panem, Katniss Everdeen is left to return to the rubble of District 12. She doesn't know what her purpose in life is suppose to be, or how she will even manage to survive when everyone she loves is dead. Until, that is, she discovers that her true love, Peeta Mellark, has made a nearly full recovery from his brainwash. How will these two survive?
1. New Beginnings in District 12

Author's note:  
Hello! This is my story that I am in the process of writing in my free time. Basically I don't know if anyone will like it or not, it's okay regardless of what you feel. If you stumble upon this, thank you for taking time to consider my work. :) I hope it's okay! I take criticism, so feel free to discuss what you think with me, that's fine. I'm going to try to update a chapter a week. I've already written the first 3 chapters, so at least I know I can promise you guys about 60 document pages (on Word anyway) right off the bat! I have proof read my work, but I'm not perfect. Especially since I'm a biologist who only writes lab reports as a primary form of writing, I may forget things here and there. I swear I'll make changes as I see them! Thanks, have a great time and enjoy! -KJ

"Katniss. You are free to go home now," said Haymitch, my long time mentor. I would call him my friend, but after being a toy of Panem for so long, I do not believe in the word _friend_ anymore.

"Home? What home? It got blown to smithereens a year ago." I spat back.

"Well, I don't care, you're going to a place far away from here, which happens to contain a house that has your ownership. Frankly anything would be better than watching you sit here in a room with no window. Obviously you don't know that a lot of people just fought for your freedom to be alive right now."

"Well to be frank, I'd rather be dead," I retorted.

"That is also too bad, but sometimes we don't get a choice in life," Haymitch says pensively. I considered his comment and sighed.

"Fine. When do we leave?"

"In about an hour. Your prep team is here one last time to make sure you're at least presentable…you know, in case anyone sees you."

"Why does it matter?"

"Because, your _trial just ended_," Haymitch said through grit teeth. I could tell he was becoming frustrated.

How was I on trial without knowing it? Sitting in this room just seemed like a form of punishment the Capitol thought fitting before eventually killing me. How did I ever come out of this trial alive? _Surely I should be dead._

"Come on," Haymitch said while trying to coax me out of my chair. Let's get you dressed. We will discuss this on the train ride. I reluctantly agree and follow him to see my prep team for one last time.

I had a shred of warmth in my heart when I saw my prep team recovering nicely from the horrors that was the great war of Panem. However, knowing that everyone I cared about was dead left me feeling cold and lifeless. My mind flashed to a place I have been trying to avoid for the past several weeks. Peeta. Even though Peeta is still alive, he might as well be dead for the sake of my heart. I thought about what it must have been like to hijack him. I know he was not tortured quietly. The thought of this made me shudder and grow even weaker.

I try to walk on my own after my prep team is finished with me, but I stumble into the door. I was sent in a wheel chair to the train and securely fastened to a seat. Haymitch sits across from me with a bottle of liquor.

"Where'd you find that?" I said nudging my head toward the bottle.

"I snuck it out from the party celebrating the end of your trial." He popped open the lid and drank a very long drink. I was amused by the irony that I was not a part of this party even though it was celebrating my life. I probably would have drained the life of the party anyway. I thought about the last party that I attended. Finnick's wedding. Everyone was so cheerful, if only for a brief while. Gale and I danced and laughed, but it was not true happiness. Now Finnick is gone, and Gale could care less about how I am. What about my own mother? Is she ashamed of her murderous daughter? I wish I was the one that died, not Prim. Prim. The thought of her makes my head spin and hurt. My hatred for everything elevates whenever Prim crosses my mind. I would give my life to get her back and have a second chance at life. I wish I had the strength to snatch Haymitch's bottle from his hands. Maybe back at District 12 I will raid some from his house. Trying to put Prim out of my mind, I change the subject.

"So, I know why I was on trial, but how exactly did I manage to get out of it…_alive?"_ I said.

"Well, there were a lot of people hard at work finding anything we could to get you out of execution. Dr. Aurelius declared you mentally insane, and that was enough support to get you out of any kind of execution. However, I forgot to mention that you'll have to have counseling."

"Counseling?" I said with disgust.

"It sure beats the hell out of _death,"_ a drunk Haymitch said. I weighed his words and just managed to shrug.

I began to look out of the window as the train lurched out of the station and Haymitch said, "I wouldn't do that, it might send you into some kind of frenzy or something."

"I can handle it."

"Well, I suppose, but everything is basically turned into rubble. This war beat the shit out of this country."

All I could think about was Peeta's words with Ceasar Flickmann. War hurts both sides, and all we did was destroy each other to let some other species take over and eventually do the same thing. I fixate on a spot on the wall to avoid surfacing such emotions.

"Don't' you want to know what they did with President Coin's body?" Haymitch asked.

"Not particularly, I assume they gave her a huge funeral and made a martyr out of her," I replied, uninterested.

"Actually, no. The government had a quick service for her. I don't even think it was televised. Even though she was the head of the rebellion, most people were unhappy to know that she was going to be the new face of the country."

"Well, what happened to –" I began to choke and could barely say his name. "President Snow?" I finally managed.

"Several rumors were started about Snow's death. After you were taken from the premises, chaos instilled and his body mysteriously showed up later. Some figure he was either trampled by a crowd, or that he even choked on his own laughter."

Astonished, I shook my head and clenched my fist. "I wish I had two arrows. I would have taken out Snow first and then gone back to get Coin."

"What does it matter now? He's dead, they both are. Now we are to move on to a new beginning, or something like that."

Frustrated, I went back to my spot on the wall and stared at it until we arrived back in District 12.

I unlocked the door and found a chair in the sitting room. I sat in it for days without eating or sleeping. I just stared at the wall. Sometimes Haymitch came in and grunted, probably to make sure I was still alive. Greasy Sae came in to cook for me and make sure I moved around every once in a while. Somehow, Prim's cat Buttercup reappeared and every time I stared at him I began to feel hatred and sadness. My heart kept sinking further and further. I continually let myself deteriorate in terms of my physical and mental state. It would take a large miracle to rescue the state of my body.

One morning I was startled by a scraping sound against the house. There was a sign of life here in the void of District 12. I sluggishly arise from my chair and wobble around the house to the window to see if Buttercup was fighting prey. The only thing I could see out the window was dirt flying through the air and the end of a shovel. Curiously, I make my way out the door and around the corner of the house to see a blond haired boy shoveling a hole for a plant. A rose plant. A primrose plant. The boy turned around. Peeta.

"What the _hell_ are you doing here?" I asked in a shocked tone. After all this time, I've been sitting in District 12 alone and he finally has the nerve to show his face? I should just run back in the house, find the sharpest object I can and plunge it through my heart. I await for Peeta's response thinking that it's going to be filled with some bullshit about trying to kill himself and being sent back to this hell-hole.

"I had to wait until the doctor felt I had…improved enough to come back. Though, if I had the choice, I would have chosen to sit with you in your cell during your trial."

The only thing I could think of at the moment was profanity. I could not tell if this is the Peeta that I fell in love with during the Hunger Games, or if this is post hijacked Peeta. I sigh and think about what would happen if I have to live near a Peeta who could never go back to distinguishing between the Capitol's torture and the love that we once had. Tentatively, I thought about questions to ask Peeta which would give me my answer. If I got the wrong answer, I know where I once kept knives. There is a window on the second story of the house I could jump out of, that would be the easiest form of suicide.

"Peeta, why did you come back to District 12?" I curiously ask.

"Someone had to keep a watch on you, and I don't trust Haymitch to completely do the job," he cheerfully replied.

"Shit," I thought. This did not help. He could have said that even after recovering a little bit from the Tracker Jacker torture serum. My heart began to crack, I could feel the blood pounding and slip through the cracks.

"I have Greasy Sae to take care of me," I reply.

"Well, yes, but she only drops in on you from time to time. Katniss, you need full supervision."

"Did the doctor put you up to this?" I retort.

"Well, the doctor thought it was a good idea—" Peeta began.

"I KNEW IT. I SHOULD HAVE NEVER OPENED THE DOOR, MY HEART IS ONLY GOING TO BREAK AGAIN!" I screamed. Oops, that was suppose to be contained on the inside.

"Katniss, I'm not going anywhere. Don't you understand that I'm here to take care of you…for good?"

Hearing this news floored me. Peeta's tone sounded so familiar. However, my heart will not trust this turn of events. I cannot, will not, fall for this again.

"I…I just don't understand why you would come back for a murderer, someone who was the face of everything you were against. Why you came back for someone so…so…broken…" My voice trailed off and tears started streaming down my face.

"Katniss, I thought we've been through this before. You are my life. I don't want anything more than to be able to take care of you and be here by your side for the rest of our existences. I'll do anything to prove to you that I am here for you, for good."

Normally this would make my heart soar and I would jump into Peeta's arms and bury my head into his chest like a small child does to a parent. However, I do the exact opposite. I run back into the house and up the stairs. Instead of going for the window, I go for the bathtub. I wash away all the grime and dead skin while I'm sobbing.

When I'm finished with my bath, I'm still sobbing uncontrollably. I am immediately ashamed of my actions, but crying is the only thing I can do. When I finally pull myself together, I find a simple dress and pull my hair back into its single braid. I look in the mirror to find that even though I am clean, I am still a sight in the mirror. My dress looks two sizes too big for me and my skin is whiter than snow in the winter. The circles underneath my eyes signify the amount of blood pooled and the lack of sleep I have had within the past year. The blood underneath my eyes remind me of the amount of blood shed by the great war of Panem. Then I noticed the stench. I smelled myself and the bathroom to see if the smell was local. I left the room and investigated what the smell could be. I open what was my room upstairs and find the source of the problem. President Snow's rose. I scream and throw the flower into the fire that Greasy Sae made in the morning. I smashed the vase on the ground and ran outside to escape the fumes that were still protruding through the house. I sit on the ground and wrap my arms around my knees. I place my head in them and rock myself back and forth.

A presence next to me reassures me that I'm not alone.

"Even though I'm not going through the exact same thing as you, I still have my problems too. It's okay to be upset. Things are different now than before we entered the Hunger Games. We can get through this, but I don't think that either of us can get through this without the other…" Peeta's voice trailed off and sat staring at the sunset. He didn't put his arms around me or even touch me. He just left me sitting there as my sobs became dry and broken.

"Y-You…You really mean that?" I hesitantly ask.

"Of course Katniss, from the moment I first laid my eyes on you." His eyes had a different look to them. They were not the normal gentle eyes that I remember. Instead, his eyes were determined and almost stern. Instead of pushing the matter, I take his words to heart.

"It might take me a while to—you know, ever be normal again."

"Katniss, no offense, but you were never normal."

Then something happens that truly astonishes me. I start laughing. It hurts my aching body, but at the same time, it feels so good. I laugh a little more at his words. He was absolutely right; I have never been normal.

"Thank you Peeta. I just meant that it will take time to grieve and mourn all that I have lost. I'm just thankful that I haven't lost you as well. I thought that I had lost you, even though you were still alive. I thought I'd never see the same Peeta as before the Hunger Games."

"I'm not the same Peeta as before the Hunger Games. I still have a hard time distinguishing between reality and the torture that the Capitol put me through with the tracker jacker serum. It has taken time to train myself how to recognize when something isn't right. However, after they took you away, something rattled within me. I realized that I was losing you again. It sent me into a spell that took a long time for me to recover. The doctors ran several tests and realized that most of the tracker jacker serum was gone, but there was no way to completely eradicate all of it from my body. I will struggle with this for the rest of my life. However, I noticed that I started to get better when I was around you more often. I still care about you more than air itself, Katniss. I hope you know that and I hope that you can accept it. I fear sometimes that I will turn into that awful person that I was when I was first rescued from the Capitol, however I'm willing to always improve myself to continue to protect you. Now that we're in this…very empty area, I hope we can both work on ourselves and improve our conditions." Peeta's eyes focused on mine intently to see how I had taken his heart-filled speech.

My first instinct was to run. The second was to pin Peeta to the ground and kiss him. I shuddered at the thought of Peeta trying to kill me when he was first rescued from the Capitol. I wondered what would happen if Peeta suddenly spiraled into that mental state again. Then I reflected on many of the good memories Peeta and I shared together. From our very first kiss in the Seventy-Fourth Hunger Games for the cameras, to the first time I felt a certain hunger in my core. For the first time in months, my eyelids became heavy with sleep. At first, I didn't know how to process this feeling. Finally I realized that I was exhausted. After suffering from insomnia for the past several months, all I wanted to do was climb into bed with Peeta at my side, holding me and caressing my face.

I lifted up my head and said, "I am so exhausted. I haven't felt this tired in months." I wanted to express my gratitude of Peeta's presence, however I could not form any cognitive thought as my eyelids drooped lower and lower.

"I'll help get you into bed," Peeta said while standing up and dusting the dirt off of his clothes.

"Can you make sure the room doesn't smell like President Snow's roses first? I threw them out, but the stench spread throughout the whole house."

"How about we just go over to my house instead? I have a warm bed with your name on it." Peeta smiled and stared at me; this time his gaze held the soft eyes that I so craved throughout the past year.

"Just as long as we get there quickly, otherwise I'm going to sleep right in this very spot," I say sheepishly. Peeta picks me up in his arms—his strength has dramatically deteriorated, but still manages to carry me the distance to his house and safely into his bed.

The last thing I murmur as he peels my fingers from his shirt is, "Stay with me tonight Peeta?"

"Always," he whispers into my ear. For the first time in months I sleep free of nightmares.


	2. Rebuilding

Author's Note: Hello again! So I decided that I would post another chapter just to give you all a little something to read and show that I'm good on my word that I have enough story stuff in the mix. But! I'm going to stay true to my word and only post once a week after this. So, next Friday I'll post another chapter (which is basically already done). I've received a couple reviews, and I must appropriately give a big thanks to those who did! I appreciate the comments! It's great that most of you are very encouraging, it's nice to hear! This chapter has been written for quite some time. It's one that gave me inspiration for even writing a story based on the Hunger games to begin with basically. Basically Suzanne Collins left her story open for people like us—writers and readers—to discover how exactly Peeta and Katniss could rebuild their relationship once again. I liked that a little bit, so props to you Ms. Collins! Anyway, I hope you all enjoy, I spent quite a bit of time with this chapter. I'm trying to make these as interesting as possible, I hate reading chapters that are full of no plot development, so sometimes getting the nitty gritty chapters of dialogue are a little hard in terms of developing anything. Enjoy! -KJ

Chapter 2-Rebuilding

I woke up the next morning expecting to find Peeta's arms wrapped around me. Instead, I smelled the most delicious smells of bread, eggs, and bacon. My nose led me downstairs where I found a focused Peeta at work decorating plates and crafting a very large breakfast. I leaned against the doorway and watched Peeta at work in awe. I looked down at myself and noticed that I looked like a train wreck. I ran upstairs to take a bath but noticed I didn't have any clothes. Then, I remembered I was at Peeta's house. I ran downstairs and out the back door to quickly take a bath and change. At last, I've found my reason to get up in the morning.

I hurriedly rushed back to Peeta's house, in through the back door and started to sneak upstairs again. I wanted Peeta to come wake me up and be surprised that I already changed. I sneak under the covers and closed my eyelids. Shortly, Peeta walked into the bedroom and sits on the edge of the bed.

"I know you're awake Katniss." I didn't respond. I was not going to blow my cover.

"You can't have breakfast if you don't get up…" I remained glued to my position.

"It's getting cold Katniss, and I'm not afraid to eat it all." I held just a little longer, eventually Peeta will have to blow his cover too. Eventually he reached his arm out to pat my shoulder and I open one eye.

"I knew you were awake, you're just trying to mess with me," Peeta calmly said. "Come on and get up, I've been slaving over a hot stove all morning and the food is getting cold."

A little puzzled by Peeta's lack of emotion, I got out of bed and followed him downstairs to the kitchen. It was set very nicely and was obvious he put a lot of work into breakfast. I sat down at the table where I noticed a bouquet of flowers. Where did he get these? District 12 has been a void of everything attractive, and yet, the most beautiful flowers sat before me. I leaned in to smell them and noticed a sweet fragrance. No roses in sight, perfect. I smiled and plucked one out of the bouquet to place in my hair. That should make Peeta notice me a little more. Even though he created this wonderful meal, did he do it to distract him from something? Or did he really create this breakfast for me? My heart churned with mixed emotions and lots of questions. As Peeta served breakfast I thought I would dig a little deeper into Peeta's mind. However, I didn't want to upset him, so I started with a few casual questions.

"So, what's on the agenda today?" I ask calmly.

"Agenda? I didn't know we had an agenda," Peeta responds softly.

"Well, I guess we don't, but I was just wondering if you had anything in mind to do today?"

"No, I haven't thought of anything. Do you have any ideas?"

"I haven't gone hunting in a while, I might do that," I responded casually, and also seeing if Peeta would make a note about my going off by myself.

"If that's what you would like to do, go ahead. I'll be here."

"What will you do?" I asked curiously.

"I haven't gotten that far yet, maybe tend to the garden I planted a couple days ago." It was clear that Peeta wasn't getting the hint. I needed to make things clearer for him.

I unintentionally slam my fork onto the table and said in a rough tone, "Peeta, what is wrong with you? Normally you would beg me to stay. You've never been okay with me going off by myself before. Is it something I've done?"

Taken aback, Peeta paused and then said, "No, of course it's not you. I'm trying to give you space that you no doubt need. I'm not trying to come on too strong out of fear for myself spiraling out of control, and for your time to mourn as well."

Tears started to flow down my face. The word _mourn_ struck me wrong. I immediately thought of Prim, Finnick, my mother, and Gale. Even though my mother and Gale are still alive, it's as though they are dead to me anyway.

"This is what I feared," replied Peeta. "I've upset you now, and that was the last thing I wanted to do to you." He turned away, too ashamed to face me.

"No, no, it wasn't you Peeta," I quickly responded. "It's just I want you here and I want things back the way they used to be—back before the Hunger Games."

"I wasn't in your life before the Hunger Games," Peeta observed. He turned his gaze back toward me. His eyes looked stern and his jaw was clenched. He continued his speech, "Although, life before the Hunger Games was much simpler. I had a family, aspirations, and even though the most important part of my life is sitting here in my house with me right now, we both are so emotionally damaged that we can't seem to get past it…" Peeta's voice began to trail off and I noticed that he started tearing up as well. I grabbed a clean cloth napkin and walked over next to him. I lifted up his face and dabbed his tears away.

Peeta chuckled and said, "Aren't I suppose to be helping dry your tears?"

"Peeta, we are supposed to be there for each other. This is going to be hard for the both of us. We can't let this overtake us though. That would be exactly what the Capitol would want."

"The Capitol doesn't exist anymore, it's gone," Peeta choked. His gaze turned stone cold again.

"Yes, but President Snow would want us to be miserable throughout the rest of our lives, even though he is now dead. We have to stick together Peeta, we need each other for support." The word support rang with clarity and confidence.

"You're right Katniss. As hard as this is for me, the last thing I would ever want would be to lose you. I can't forgive myself for the things I've done to you recently. I used to have nightmares about losing you, and now I have nightmares about killing you. When I attempted to kill you the first time I saw you after I was rescued, my heart went crazy. After they stripped you away from me, the only thing I wanted was to be dead. Then again when they took you after President Coin's death, I only wanted to be dead too. I never thought I could be happy again until the doctor released me to come back to District 12. When the doctor said that the only way to get better was through you, that was the one thing I knew I had to do. Be here for you. Hearing you say that President Snow would want us to be miserable makes me even more motivated to get better. I thought that once I was hijacked it was an incurable disease. Now I see that we can get past this too. Katniss, that is why you are my entire life." Peeta stretched his arms and pulled me onto his lap. We sat there for at least an hour in silence. I never wanted to leave that spot, or his warm arms.

Finally Peeta broke the silence and said, "Why don't you go grab your bow and go hunting? I can stay here and clean up all the dishes."

"After that speech you gave about being happy that I'm around, you still want me to go by myself?" I asked bewildered.

"Well, we need food for dinner, and if I went with you I would scare off all of the game. Peeta said reassuringly. "I can manage on my own for a while, just as long as you're not gone too long. Somehow I managed to keep myself occupied while I was in the Capitol, didn't I?"

"Well, the tracker jacker serum helped with that one," I said sympathetically. "Though you are right, you would scare off all of the game, assuming there is anything left. I don't even know if I have a bow, I'll have to go back over to my house and check." I shuddered at the thought of returning back to the house with the putrid stench of President Snow. I stood up and placed my dishes in the sink. I turned around and said, "Peeta, can I live here? I have such a hard time facing my house now that it's been tainted with President Snow. It's too hard going by Prim's room and knowing she once lived there too. There is nothing left for me in that house except the remnants of the old Katniss Everdeen. This house is so much warmer in terms of its appearance and feels more like a home. I can rebuild my life without constant reminders of the past coming and haunting me here."

"Of course, Katniss. Would you like me to go with you to your house and get your stuff?"

"Yes, I would appreciate that. I don't think I could step in that house alone ever again."

"Well, let's go over right now, we can leave the dishes for later."

We wandered over to my house and opened the door. The gloom loomed over the entire house. The stench still made my nose twinge and immediately I wanted to sprint back to Peeta's house. I grabbed all of my clothes and opened the closet to find Cinna's wedding dresses. Immediately I started sobbing and collapsed to the ground. Peeta walked into the room and eyed the open closet. He packed the wedding dresses and removed them from my sight before he came back to comfort me.

"I miss Cinna too," Peeta said. "He was a great person and I'm sure wishes he could be here right now designing your post-Mockingjay wardrobe. You have to be strong, for Cinna." Peeta put his arm around my shoulder and I turned to face his chest. I cried into his shoulder and he wrapped me in a warm embrace. We sat on the floor until I pulled myself together to quit crying.

"Thanks, Peeta." I say between sniffling and coughs.

"Always," he replies. Again with that word. _Always._ It made me cry again.

"What's wrong now?" Peeta asks as he brushes away my tears.

"You're just…so good to me." I replied.

"How many times do I have to tell you that you are my whole life? Besides, you already helped me this morning, it's the least I can do," Peeta chuckled. "Now, let's get you out of this house…permanently."

"I like the sound of that," I said picking myself up off the floor. Peeta reached for my hand, and I finally feel back at home. Shivers ran up my spine as he squeezed my hand once.

"Wait a minute," I said dropping his hand.

"What? Did we forget something?" he asked.

"No, no. There's one more thing I want to do before I leave this wretched house for good. I need one more moment with this place and then we can leave. Can you wait for me outside?"

"Sure, whatever you say." Peeta walked outside and anxiously awaited my return. I grabbed a brick that I used to prop open my door every day and threw it through the window, breaking the glass and shattering it on the floor. Blood pumped faster through my body and my adrenaline rushed to my face. A brief moment of satisfaction arose within me, followed by intense anger. I started throwing furniture around the house as I stormed my way out the door. Tears streamed down my face and I ran toward Peeta. He dropped all the bags and placed his arms around me in a warm embrace.

"It'll be all right now, Katniss. This is our new start." We waited until I stopped crying to walk over to Peeta's house. I stopped for a minute and noticed that it truly did look different. President Snow can't get me now. My life was about to get a lot better now that the venom had been sucked out of my life.

I began unpacking everything and placed everything in what would now belong to Peeta and myself. Our room. I smiled as I thought of the word _our_. Peeta emptied some of his drawers so I could place my clothes in them. He hung up the wedding dresses in a different room so I wouldn't have to face them again. I couldn't throw away Cinna's dresses because they were the only reminders I had left of him.

As I continued to look for spaces to place my wardrobe, I opened a drawer with Peeta's ties in them and smiled. Some of these were from his designer, Portia. I took one out and thought about my own father. I used to wear his one and only tie (the one he wore when he married my mother) around the house until he came home from his day at the mine. He would pick me up and swing me around and let me play with the tie. I picked up one of Peeta's ties and slipped it around my neck. I giggled as I poorly attempted to tie it.

Peeta entered the room and said, "What's going on in here?" I turned around with a start and blushed.

"I'm sorry, it just reminded me of what I used to do with my father's tie as a kid," I said bashfully.

"Don't be sorry, I think it looks dashing on you," Peeta said as he came to adjust it. "However, you need to work on your tying skills." Peeta adjusted the tie and evened it out around my neck. "There, now you've got it on correctly."

I ran to the mirror and looked at the tie. "I look silly wearing it with a dress!" I said as my hands went up to grab my face.

"On the contrary, I think you look beautiful, as always." Peeta said as he walked over to the mirror and placed his arm around my shoulders. My face turned scarlet red and I had to avert my eyes out of fear for turning even redder.

We finished putting away everything and I noticed the only thing left out was my bow. I was relieved to find it tucked away in a closet back at the house. After using Beetee's bow, I hoped I could still use a very basic bow. I picked it up and turned it over in my hands a couple of times.

"I was going to go hunting! I haven't gone in a very long time."

"Well, get going! I'll hold down the fort," Peeta said, motioning toward the door. "I expect you'll get something delicious for dinner."

"Dinner!" I licked my lips and my stomach rumbled. "I'll do my best, I don't know what's around seeing as District 12 seems to be very empty." I walked out the door and said, "I'll be home soon." _Home. _I've finally found it.

I ran to the meadow and found that there were still many critters available. I was relieved that I could still successfully hunt, seeing as it's been so long since I last used my bow and arrow. I was also relieved that I didn't get scared to hunt. After using Beetee's super-weapon in the war, I thought that I wouldn't be able to hunt again. I still found the same joy in hunting as I did before the Hunger Games. This surprised me as usually I hunted with Gale. Knowing the transformed Gale, the thought of hunting with him made my head hurt and feel sympathetic for the animals he would kill. Gale's attitudes toward people during the war were almost the same as when he hunted animals out in the meadow. This realization made me queasy, and I had to justify my own reasoning behind hunting. Food. I hunt for food. I took a deep breath and dropped Gale from my thoughts. I made my way back to Peeta's house with several animals in my hands. When I opened the door I immediately dropped everything I was carrying. Peeta was on the floor with his hands clutched to his head.

"Peeta!" I screamed. I crouched next to him trying to see the expression on his face. Fortunately, he was still breathing. I briefly thought about after he was hit by the Force Field in the Quarter Quell. I didn't have Finnick to save him this time if he were to quit breathing. Once I suppressed the thought, I brainstormed what could have triggered this episode. I worried about him clutching my throat, but decided to take a risk anyway. I touched his shoulder and tried to wake him back into reality.

"Peeta, it's Katniss. Please come back to me! Whatever is happening to you right now is not real, it's just a flashback. I'm here in reality and I want you to come back to reality to be with me." I couldn't tell if it was working or not. Peeta writhed on the ground a little bit. My hands went to his face, to caress it and hold it. Peeta immediately started crying and even let out a scream.

"Peeta, it's okay, I'm here for you now. Please, please come back to me." At once his eyes opened and fixated on me. I was sure the next thing that would happen would be his hands at my throat. I prepared myself for the worst mentally and emotionally. I knew it was too good to be true, the thought of having a life with Peeta. President Snow would continue to haunt us for years to come, no matter where we lived or how we coped with our lifestyle. Tears started to form in my eyes; I gulped and swallowed to fight them back. Peeta's eyes were still fixated on me, and his body was still writhing on the floor. I did the only thing that I could think about doing—I held Peeta's face very steadily (although my hands were shaking with fear) and leaned my head down to kiss him. It was not a long kiss out of fear for making things worse, but when I pulled apart from his face the writhing started to slow down, and eventually ceased.

"Peeta?" I cautiously asked as his eyes were closed. "Peeta?" I said again. No response. I listened to see if he was breathing. I watched his chest rise up and down in a rhythmic pattern. A couple minutes passed by, and his eyes were still closed. I caressed his face and kissed his cheek. Finally his eyes opened and he looked weak.

"Peeta." I said with a relieved expression on my face. Tears started to flow from my face. "Peeta, are you okay?"

"Y-Yeah, I-I think I'm f-fine," he said. "I feel really faint though." He tried to sit up, but I pushed him back on the ground.

"Rest. It's my turn to take care of you." I ran to grab pillows and a glass of water. "Don't move, you need to eat something. I'll cook dinner."

"Can you stay with me for a couple minutes first?" he asked.

"Always." I murmured. I held his hand and watched tears form in his eyes. He looked so beautiful in his natural state. I ran my fingers through his hair and waited until he was all right to be alone until I was done preparing dinner. I cooked the game that I hunted earlier in the day and made a broth for us. I rushed to where Peeta was laying and got him propped up in a sitting position. I fed him the broth and cooked meat. After we finished our meal I cleaned up the dishes and returned to where he was sitting.

"Are you feeling any better?" I asked as I grabbed his hand.

"Much better, although, I don't know if I could stand up and walk. I feel terribly weak."

"Are you tired enough to sleep?"

"Very much so, I feel exhausted."

"I'll carry you up the stairs."

"K-Katniss, you don't need to do that!" He weakly shrieked.

"Peeta, it's fine. I'm strong, I think I can do it." I started to pick him up and tried to sling him over my back. He's heavy, but it's only because he's so bulky with muscle. Even then, he's deteriorated in his muscle mass. I slowly drag Peeta up the stairs and get him into bed. I didn't bother to undress him because it would be hard to get any other kind of clothes on him. I climbd in next to him and grab his hand.

"Katniss?" Peeta began.

"Yes?"

"Thank you. I don't know what I would have done without you." Peeta yawned and his eyelids start to droop. He wasn't done though. He feebly rolled over to see my face. "I didn't sleep next to you last night out of fear you wouldn't want me to do so. Also, I refrained because I was afraid of hurting you in your sleep. Now that I've gone through an…" he paused. "…After going through an episode like that, I know that I can handle when things go wrong."

"Where did you sleep last night? I feel awful for taking your bed," I said feeling guilty.

"I slept on the floor. Close enough so that in case you had nightmares I could help you, but far enough so that you could have your space." Peeta seemed very concerned as he was speaking. "You slept so soundly though, it was only when I started having a nightmare that I needed to get up and fix breakfast for the both of us. I wish I could have watched you wake up though, and don't think I didn't notice when you left. You're not that sneaky, you know."

"Thank you, Peeta. I understand your concerns. Is it too much if I stay next to you for the night?"

"I think it'll be all right," Peeta says with a grin playing on his lips. "We'll just have to rebuild what the Capitol destroyed." Peeta sounded disgusted when he said, "Too bad too, before the Quarter Quell I was really comfortable with spending every night in your bed with you." Next he did something that I had to double take: Peeta winked! I started to giggle and squeezed his hand.

"Well, for now you need to sleep and gain your strength back. We have a lot of rebuilding to do tomorrow, we've both changed so much since the war."

"I'll start," Peeta said. "My name is Peeta Baxter Mellark. I am the son of a baker and I find comfort in painting. I was only an average student in school, because my thoughts were preoccupied with impressing girls. One day only one girl stood out to me, and I've spent the rest of my life attempting to impress her. When I was sixteen I was reaped to be a contender in the 74th Hunger Games. I did not deserve to be a winner, though right now I'm glad that I am a winner because I have this house. I'm also laying next to the most beautiful girl I've ever seen in my life." Peeta pauses to place my hand on the spot where his heart is. "Only one girl has ever stolen my heart, and I am glad she has. She will always have it." Tears start to well up in my eyes. "Okay, your turn," Peeta ends with a small grin.

I wipe my eyes and clear my throat. "I didn't know your middle name is Baxter," I chuckle. "It's kinda funny."

"It means 'Baker' I believe. I always thought it was funny, but maybe it reveals my destiny. Now, enough procrastinating, your turn."

"Okay, okay. My name is Katniss Columbia Everdeen. I am the son of a healer, and my father was a miner. He died in a horrible mining accident several years ago. I used to take care of my family after with my hunting. I'm told that I'm talented at hunting. I always did it because my father enjoyed hunting. My grades in school were always good because I wanted to go train in a different district so I could provide for my family. I wanted to become a professional hunter so I could always feed people, but once I found out that none of the districts could offer that to me, I wanted to own a restaurant so I could hunt my own food and have someone cook it. Keeping people fed was always my greatest hope since many times we struggled for food as kids. This became evident when a boy gave me a loaf of bread once, even though he suffered a beating for it. I forever became thankful for that offering. I had a best friend named Gale who shared the same loves and concerns as I did. He was only ever a friend to me, but I was very confused about him for a long time. It was only when his obsession for weapons came greater than his desire to help people that it became clear that I couldn't see him as more than a friend. We had a falling out not long ago, and I haven't heard from him since. I also participated in the 74th Hunger games when I was only sixteen years old. I volunteered for my sister Primrose Everdeen, who is now deceased. I would not change that decision ever because I owed it to her. I do not know why I survived the Hunger Games, although I should be dead from it. Only through luck and the best of help did I make it out of there alive. People used to see me as an inspiration, but I don't really understand why. I just want to live as a humble person. I don't understand why I'm still alive, only some fate of the universe kept me here. I thought I knew everything about my future at a young age, however, I know now that at any moment anything can change."

I looked up at Peeta to see his expression. His face was intent on mine, and his expression was halfway between puzzled and intense.

"What?" I said.

"N-Nothing. That was beautiful Katniss…Columbia? Why Columbia?"

"I was told that Columbia means dove. I think it's an old time name. Someone in my family had the name and it was passed down through the line on my father's side."

Peeta looked even more perplexed.

"What?" I repeated.

"Dove? That's funny, why didn't you tell anyone that?"

"I don't understand?" I replied with my eyebrows furrowed.

"Well, don't you see, dove, mockingjay, they're related."

I paused for a moment. I had never made the connection before. My back shuddered. Peeta, do you think I was destined to be the Mockingjay?

"I absolutely believe so, Katniss. Ever since the first day I laid eyes on you, I knew that you were a fighter. You never did things conventionally, and always had something unique to add to any subject. I knew the first time you silenced the birds around you with your singing that you would be the one that made a difference in the universe."

I curled up in the pillow. I didn't know how to feel about this sudden realization. Happy that I helped lead a revolution? Sad because so many people are now dead because of me? Scared? Angry? This was too much emotion for my body to handle. I sat up and huddled my legs together and sank my head into my knees. I couldn't cry, I already did too much of that today.

"Don't be upset, Katniss. You are the reason why we are alive and are able to have this conversation right now. If it hadn't been for you, _both _of us would be dead right now." He stroked my back and continued, "I don't know about you, but I for one am glad we are having this conversation right now. Seeing your face and spending any time with you makes anything else seem insignificant to me."

"Why are you such a gentleman, Peeta?" I asked. "You're just so genuinely good to me." I covered my face with my hands. "I'm just a murderer."

"Not to me. You are Katniss Everdeen, and you are the woman who I care about more than my own life." The next event shocked me more than anything. Peeta had moved to be sitting up and was now facing me. He peeled my hands off from my face and held them in his hands. He leaned his face in and kissed me so gently I could have melted in his embrace. When he pulled apart he said, "I was going to hold off on that for a while, but the opportunity seemed right."

"It was perfect." I said. It really was. Peeta then yawned leaned back down on the pillow.

"It's time for you to sleep, Peeta. I'm exhausted too from all the emotions from the day. Thank you for letting me get to re-know who you are."

"Any time, Katniss. Now, get in my arms so both of us can sleep well tonight."


	3. Real

Chapter 3—Real

Author's Note: Hello everyone! Just as promised, one week after my last posting…Look! Another Chapter! Yaaaayyyy! Haha. Anyway, this chapter has a lot more 'information' type stuff in it, the next chapter does too. But! There are some good stuff, and I can promise you an appearance of a villain (kinda familiar, it's a character you all knew and maybe loved) within the next chapter. I might change up the POV a little bit, but I'll make sure you guys know before I do it. Anyway, I'm glad that I have another chapter DONE for sure, and it's the longest I've written yet. I'm thinking now though that there's going to be an interim chapter between this chapter and the really long one I've already written. Who knows. I'm hoping to really keep on my writing—I just got promoted at work, so I've been taking on extra shifts. I worked 12 hours today with 1 15 minute break. I fractured my left ankle about 2 months ago, and let's just say my feet are killing me right now. I'm actually posting this chapter as close to midnight as I can mostly because I can't sleep. Working long hours on my feet winds me up and it takes a long time to sleep. Did I mention I have to be at work in less than 12 hours again? Ah well, it's just a summer job, but it's for a great cause. Enough about real life, you all are here to read about the Hunger Games, not my sob story of a life. ;) Hey, I wonder who actually reads this crap anyway, if you do, you should write a review thinking 1) of what you think of this story! And 2) Figure out a creative way of weaving in the word 'banana' into your review. The person with the best one will get a shout out in my next author's note. Cool, huh? It just gives me an idea of how much I should or shouldn't explain in my author's notes, believe me, there is a method to the madness. Anyway, enjoy, and if you have any ideas for further plot suggestions, I'm open to ideas, although I do have lots of them. Thanks! –KJ… AND NOW TO THE STORY!

I woke up the next morning wrapped in Peeta's arms. I looked at his face—serenity was displayed in his expression. Seeing his face be so calm filled my heart with joy. I hoped he slept without nightmares, knew that I slept free of them. Realizing that this was probably the first time I woke up before he did, I thought I would make the most of it. For a minute I laid and watched his chest rise up and down, and his facial expressions as he slept. Occasionally he snored, which I found hilarious. I decided to repay him back for the breakfast he made me yesterday. Only this time, I was going to do better. I snuck out of his arms and closed the door behind me. I cooked the rest of the game I hunted the previous day and made an elaborate breakfast. Then I put everything on a tray and brought it upstairs—breakfast in bed. I opened the door, careful not to spill the contents on the tray. Peeta was still fast asleep. I wondered how I could wake him up without startling him. I cautiously grabbed a plate of food and wafted the smell of cooked meat toward his face. I doubted that it would work, but after a couple seconds of wafting the succulent fumes, Peeta stirred and eventually opened his eyes.

"What the-?" he said confused.

"Surprise!" I said. "Breakfast in Bed!"

"Oh, you really spoiled me this time," Peeta said digging into a plate. "This is really fantastic." By the time I settled next to him with my plate of food, Peeta was done with the contents of his plate. I grabbed the tray and let him eat another plate of food.

"You're feeding me better than they did at the Capitol!" Peeta said helping himself to another plate.

"I take it you like my surprise?" I said. Peeta kissed my forehead and shoveled another bite into his mouth. "I'll take that as a yes," I said with a smile.

When Peeta swallowed his very large bite, he said, "We should go exploring today. Can we go to the lake?" I immediately froze. I've never taken anyone out to the lake. I thought about Bonnie and Twill, the people who told me about District 13. I breathed heavily and convinced myself that I can take someone out there without it causing pain.

"Sure," I reluctantly replied. "Hopefully there won't be too much damage from the bombings not too long ago."

"I'm sure it'll be all right. I really want to paint some scenery out there and get out of this stuffy house." I agreed that fresh air would be good for the both of us.

At the lake, Peeta sketched the surrounding areas and landscapes. I watched him for a while, but let him keep his artwork for his own pleasure. I gathered elements to weave together. I thought of Mags and her abilities to weave tight baskets. I tied Finnick's knots into a viable net and threw it out into the lake. After I finished, I attempt one of Mags's baskets. The first one looked very sloppy, so I dropped it and started a new one. The second one looked much better, but nowhere near Mags's craftsmanship. I searched for flowers to bring back to the house, and ended up weaving some in a crown to wear. I wandered back over to where Peeta was sitting to see his drawings. His sketch of the lake was completed, and mostly done with another of the surrounding areas.

"You're very fast at your work. It looks fantastic," I said, examining his artwork.

"It's really not all that hard when your object doesn't move." Peeta started a new drawing as I laid down watching fluffy clouds float in the sky. I dozed throughout the day, but was eventually woken to Peeta saying, "Eureka! I've done it!"

I opened one eye and groggily said, "What is it?"

"See for yourself," he said slyly. I sat up and peered over his sketchbook. I looked at an image of myself laying on my back with flowers all around me.

"Oh, Peeta… you didn't have to draw me."

"I wanted to do so. I was afraid I wouldn't get it right. I have a very high standard when it comes to drawing you." I blushed and laid back down to examine more clouds. Peeta laid down with me, grabbing my hand. We pointed out clouds that appeared in bizarre shapes. We laughed, cuddled, and eventually kissed several times. That same hunger feeling returned, only this time nothing was around to interrupt us. I did not want the hunger feeling to leave, and it didn't. Whenever Peeta broke his grip from me, I had to somehow regain it back again. After a while I settled with him playing with my hair. For most of the afternoon we were silent. Peeta eventually started playing "Real or Not Real" from back when he couldn't decipher between reality and the Capitol's hijacking. I worried that he thought this was all a dream. My heart sunk a little bit with each passing question. Eventually, Peeta dropped a bombshell.

"You love me. Real, or not real?" Peeta asked, averting his gaze.

"Real," I said with conviction.

That was it for Peeta. He kissed me with such passion and fervor that it would have been impossible for a person to not fall in love after such a powerful kiss. I allowed myself to feel happy and wrapped myself up in his kisses.

When we finally broke apart, I said, "So much for taking things slower," I said.

"Well, I didn't want to take it slow any more." Peeta chuckled and looked guilty for saying that.

"I'm not complaining either…" I said slyly.

"I love you Katniss Everdeen."

"I love you, Peeta Mellark." I never thought I would toss out that word—the "love" word. I always told myself that no man could replace the love that I had for my father. I now knew that it was possible to have more than one love. My father has been dead for a number of years and no one would ever replace how much he meant to my life, but another addition could be made to my heart. I was exasperated to add Peeta to the very short list of people I loved in my heart.

We traveled back to the house hand in hand oblivious to the surroundings around us. Most of the wreckage from the bomings had been cleared, but for the time being, District 12 seemed irrelevant to us. When we arrived home, there was a note on the door.

"It's from Haymitch!" Peeta exclaimed.

"What does _he_ want?" I said surprised.

"He wants to meet with us sometime tomorrow. Haymitch wants to discuss future plans with the District and the country of Panem."

"Why does he care?" I ask puzzled.

"I don't know. I guess we'll find out tomorrow."

"Why doesn't he just visit us right now? He only lives a couple doors down from us."

"My guess is that he tried to visit us today, but we were too busy to have time for him. He's probably too drunk to be able to talk about new circumstances at this time of day."

"You're probably right," I said. "I guess we'll spend time at the house tomorrow." I was saddened by this thought, I wanted to go back to the lake tomorrow and go hunting.

"Well, I can think of some fun things to do around the house while we wait for him," Peeta says sneakily. He grabbed my hand and led me into the house. For now, all I knew was that the only person I wanted beside me was Peeta.

The next morning Peeta and I were startled awake by booming sounds outside of the house.

"They're coming to get us!" Peeta shrieked.

"What's happening?" I shouted as I ran to the window.

"We'll hide from them, maybe whoever is looking for us won't find us."

"Peeta, do you know how ridiculous you just sounded?" I said half laughing.

"Do you have a better idea? Come on, we are wasting time!"

"Peeta, it's thunder and lightning. Come here and see." I motioned for Peeta to come to the window and pointed to the incoming storm.

"That's even worse than someone coming to look for us," Peeta panted.

"What do you mean?" I asked stepping toward him.

"I _hate_ thunder storms," Peeta said. "They always terrified me, even as a kid." The storm boomed closer to us and Peeta became restless.

"Peeta, we don't have any food," I said as I came to this realization. I would have to go hunt during the storm. I've done it several times when my mother, Prim, and I lived in our old house.

"I can starve," Peeta bluntly said.

"We could be stuck here for _hours_ though. I need to go hunt food," I stated.

"No, you don't. You don't need to go outside. We've survived days without food and water before, we'll be okay."

"Peeta, that was before you had been hijacked. I realized the other day when I went hunting that you went a long time without eating and I came home to find you practically having a seizure on the ground."

Peeta sighed. It was obvious he knew that there was a correlation between his flashbacks and hunger. The tracker jacker torture serum almost made him hypoglycemic. I knew he needed to eat something to keep up his strength. I ran to the door and grabbed my bow to head outside.

"Doesn't wildlife run away during a storm?" Peeta asked cautiously. I laughed at this thought. Even though animals do seek shelter during a storm, they don't disappear off the earth.

"I know what I'm doing Peeta, I'll be just fine," I said as I dashed out the door. I ran to the meadow as the storm steadily grew worse. Lightning and torrential rain blurred my vision as I hunted. Finally I obtained enough food to supply us for a while. I began to run back home until I noticed that I was running in an area without anything surrounding it. Trees and buildings once covered this area, but after the bombing of District 12, nothing remained. I stopped briefly to catch my breath. I knew that I had to keep running all the way home to be able to make it out without being struck by lightning. I started to run again and noticed that the lightning strikes were ever increasing. With the house in sight, I sprinted even faster to make it inside. Suddenly, I was on the ground, paralyzed. Had I been struck by lightning? I couldn't feel my legs. My eyes opened briefly and I tried to scramble to my feet. The pain was so excruciating that I blacked out from the rest of the world. The hands of someone grabbed me and dragged me several yards until I could finally open my eyes once again.

"Peeta?" I said, hoping his warm embrace was not far away.

"Rise and shine sunshine," a voice said sarcastically. I sat up and looked around to find Haymitch sitting in a chair across the room.

"What are you doing here?" I said.

"I got lonely," he said sarcastically.

"Obviously, since we've seen so much of you around here lately," I responded.

"Hey, don't talk back to me. I practically saved your life not too long ago."

"Did lightning strike me?" I asked seriously.

"No, but it was very close to you. It knocked you down to your feet. You landed head down and your body collapsed on itself. I thought you had broken bones in your legs, but it seems you just landed on them."

"Well, I owe you a thank you then to pulling me out of the storm. I am very appreciative of your support. How did you know I was in trouble?"

"I was on my way over to your house when I saw you running out of the meadow. When the lightning struck, I knew that it had knocked you flat off of your feet and that you could be in serious trouble."

"Well, that was lucky that you were on your way over here. Why _are_ you here exactly?"

"I told you, I'm lonely." He said facetiously.

"Ha, well I don't believe that for a second. We don't have any alcohol here either, in case you are looking for that instead."

"I'm not looking for alcohol. There are several things we need to discuss."

My face turned red with fury. "What _kinds_ of things do we need to discuss?"

"Well, I'll tell you in a minute, I just thought I'd let you recover in a minute before I bombard you with information overload."

This news frightened me. What could be so urgent that Haymitch fought his way over to the house in a storm? All I knew was that this news better not attempt to separate Peeta and me from each other, now that we both understood how to take care of each other. I took a minute to survey the damage that my fall took on my body. My ankle hurt badly, and my leg was already forming a bruise. I winced as I carefully tended my wounds.; nothing was broken, just badly sprained. Peeta walked in while I winced and rushed over, taking my face in his hands.

"I should have never let you go out by yourself, Katniss." Peeta said apologetically.

"It's not your fault, besides, this could have happened to the both of us—and that would have been twice the damage. Only one of us hurt is better than both of us hurt. Besides, nothing is broken, I should be fine in a day or two." That last thought was most certainly a lie, it would take a couple weeks to recover from these injuries. However, I didn't want to make Peeta feel worse already. I continued, "Now we have food to last a little while. It seems as though this storm could last a while."

Peeta relaxed his grip and seemed to calm himself a bit. I could tell he still felt guilty, so I decided to change the subject and allow Haymitch to continue with his pressing news.

"Haymitch," I said taking Peeta's hands off of my face. "What is it exactly that you wanted to tell us?"

"Well, it's quite a long story. I think we should cook some food and discuss this over a hot meal. It's obvious that the storm is going to carry on for a while, so we have plenty of time to use." We cooked the meat I hunted and sat down at the table. Haymitch continued on as he said, "As you all know, we were reassigned here to District 12 after Katniss's trial was over. This was no accident."

Immediately my eyebrows lifted with curiosity. "Well I figured it wasn't an accident, this is our home." I stated.

"Well, yes, but it was also provided as a distraction."

"Distraction from what?" Peeta asked.

"We were assigned to come to District 12 to be distracted from the government." Peeta and I exchanged nervous glances at each other. Haymitch continued, "It's not as bad as you might think. Actually, things are far from being bad. There have been a lot of changes, however, to how things have been run and how they will be run in the future."

Haymitch paused for a minute to allow this news to be absorbed. He continued on, "For example, Paylor was _elected_ president after Katniss killed president Coin. Most people were very happy to have a different president in charge of the country, although no one would have ever gone as far to actually kill her I suppose. President Paylor decided to keep the district system in place, however, instead of actual districts, they will be known as areas, or states. Each will have a miniature government in place that will have representation in the capitol area, now known as The Hub. Each state will have individuals elected by the residents of the states. The age to be able to vote for these representatives will be seventeen. Each state will be renamed, and many are in the midst of deciding what specialty will be in place for the state. The education system will be mandatory for children age five through eighteen. This allows each individual to be able to decide his or her own future. It will also be possible for each state to have university education, which will specialize in a multitude of different areas of study. "

Haymitch paused again as if forgetting that we were intently listening to his words. Peeta and I had confused looks on our faces.

"Do you have any questions?" Haymitch said, as if not wanting to answer any.

"I think we should hear the full story before bombarding you with questions, Haymitch." Peeta stated. I nodded my head as if I was hearing a fantasy story.

Haymitch proceeded with his story, "Our state, formally known as District 12 is now called Ashland. This is because after District 12 was bombed, ashes from the mines covered this entire land. The meadow is flat and uncovered by vegetation now because it serves as a mass grave sight from the bombings. The ashes were buried along with the grave, which may end up preserving the bodies in the future. Ashland now has no coalmines, and our specialty is going to be producing medicine for the entire country. Other enterprises will develop in this state as well, but that information is still unknown. I currently don't know what other states will decide to produce as a whole, but each state will have its own farming industry as well as the basics so no one ever has to go hungry. Some states will have more farming than others, however the goal is for each state to be self-sufficient first, and produce extra for the rest of the country second. I do know that the area formally known as District 2 will be a large military state. District 13 will continue to be a large military zone as well. I believe your friend…Gale was it? He is working in District 2 currently as an officer in the army, helping innovate new war tactics. Some of the districts are still trying to rebel, however, are immediately stopped when this happens. Usually they are stopped in the most peaceful way possible so another war is avoided."

Gale. The only thing I retained out of Haymitch's speech was Gale. I despised his name. His gruesome attack was thought to have killed my sister Prim. For all I know, he is considered my worst enemy currently. My heart ached at the thought of making Gale my enemy, and for the thought of Prim being gone from my world. I sighed and tried not to cry. Peeta empathetically glanced at me and knew my loss of Prim consumed my thoughts. He missed her too. It dawned on me that I needed Peeta's gentle nature more than ever. His eyes alone told me that he shared the same feeling about Gale, and wished that his attack hadn't killed my sister.

"It's nice to be filled in the loop again," I said trying to choke back tears.

"Well, you two needed to know. Not only for common knowledge, but to make an appearance."

"An appearance?" Peeta asked on edge.

"Yes. The country needs to see its Mockingbird or Mockingjay or whatever the heck it was for stability. We are still very much a weak country. It could collapse on us at any time if we don't give the people what they want. For now, they are still wanting their Mockingjay."

I groaned. "The Mockingjay was the government's idea and is the reason why I should be dead. They can keep their Mockingjay."

"Katniss," Peeta said softly. "Haymitch is right. We need to make an appearance so more lives are not lost. You don't have to film propaganda anymore either. This is just to show that we are recovering form the war along with everyone else. It is our opportunity to show that we have a real life now." Peeta took my hand and warmly smiled. My brain was trying to process the thought of a "normal" lifestyle.

"So, do Peeta and I just let a camera crew come in and film us sitting here at home? We are still trying to figure out our lives just like everyone else, and even then we have been having a lot of emotional problems."

"Well, I don't know if they would want to film you guys at home. There is an invitation to go to The Hub, however, and attend an independence day party of sorts. The nation could see its Mockingjay and I'm sure interviews would be conducted from there. Seems rather innocuous to me. I, of course, would be there too to help guide you through everything," Haymitch said.

Just like old times, the three of us at the center of attention with cameras. This, however, was unlike the previous encounters at the Capitol. A twinge of new beginnings and optimism grew in my bones. Maybe this would be a good thing to do to give the country one last look at the Mockingjay before she became a new woman.

"I'll do it," I said triumphantly. "Who knows, this could be a good opportunity to see how the country is shaping up after this ridiculous war. It would be good to see Paylor—I mean President Paylor again and see how his plans are shaping up about the country as well. All I ask is that the government be different than under Snow's regime."

"That's the spirit!" Haymitch said. "That, and there will be BOOZE at The Hub!" I knew there was an ulterior motive for him to go to a party. Hopefully someone could look after Haymitch so I wouldn't have to deal with him drunker than a skunk.

"What will the other states do during this…party at The Hub?" I asked.

"It will be a week long festival. Each day is themed differently to promote democracy, and rebuilding together. Each state will also have one day to celebrate their own specialty. Ashland will have an interesting day seeing as we are developing medicine, but I imagine there will be some kind of carnival promoting a healthy life style. Though, I can imagine candies decorated as pills or syringes being passed out along with everything. This festival will be celebrated once each year. The best part of it is no Hunger Games. Instead, each state will send two children to The Hub to take part in celebrating the festivities—as _guests of honor_.

I thought about each state having an entire week to celebrate instead of mourning the deaths of many children each year. The idea of District 2 and 13 having a day to celebrate their military innovations made me feel sick, although I hoped it would have an optimistic spin on promoting peace instead. I wondered how an entire week could be sacrificed to celebrating instead of working. Someone had to stay behind, the entire country could not go without food for an entire week.

"Haymitch, how could the country afford to go on a week long celebration when someone has to make sure food and other supplies reach everyone?" I asked.

"The Hub has prepared food for these festivities, and has ever since the war ended. It is their mission to make sure that everyone can participate in festivities, regardless of wealth or location. It is important that as the first year of this kind of celebration, the country does a good job of impressing the people to keep supporting the current progress. This is where it is key for the Mockingjay to come into play."

"Well, the country's Mockingjay is a currently beaten up quite a bit, when is this week long of festivities suppose to begin anyway?"

"Two weeks from tomorrow. Do you think you can rest up by then?"

"Yeah, I think so," I said. I winced as I shifted to a better position. "I may have to lay in bed for a while though."

"Leave the food to me," Haymitch said. "Greasy Sae can come back and help you two out again."

"We would really appreciate that." Peeta said.

"Well, I'm going to run back to my house while the storm has mellowed out for now. I will contact you two before too long. In the mean time, don't do anything stupid to injure yourselves. The government needs you all to look presentable.'

"The government." I thought. I am going to be an object of the government, again. I shook my head with disgust, but then thought that it's the only way out of being killed.

"All right," I said. "I'll do it. Peeta is not leaving my side though." Peeta nodded intently.

"Well, of course. I mean I suppose you guys can drop the star-crossed lovers act if you want, but I think people will really love it."

"Who said anything about dropping it?" I said defensively.

"Wait, you? I'm confused," Haymitch said.

"There's nothing to be confused about," Peeta said triumphantly.

"Exactly, we aren't just giving the people what they want anymore," I chimed in before Haymitch could say another word.

"All right, if that's how you feel then congratulations to the both of you." Haymitch stood up and with a final nod, left the house. The storm brewed even worse than before.

"Now what?" I asked.

Peeta smirked and said, "It's too bad you're injured, we could have had some real fun cuddling up next to the fire." I blushed and averted his gaze. Peeta continued, "You're so modest, even when we are alone. It isn't wrong by any means, it's just especially funny when we are alone." My face turned scarlet red and I grabbed his hand.

"Who said we can't go cuddle by the fire?" I asked.

"Well, I think you would be much better resting in bed. You need your strength back if we are to be dancing together soon," Peeta said raising his eyebrows.

I agreed and let him carry me upstairs to our bed. "The only thing is that I wish Cinna was there to design a new dress for me."

"We all do," Peeta consoled me. "He always knew how to make you even more beautiful than I could imagine. Although, every day you continue to surprise me with your simplicity and natural beauty."

I blushed again. How does he always know how to make me blush? I leaned in and kissed his cheek. "I love you," I said. "I'm excited if anything to present ourselves as a real couple in two weeks. There will be no pressure from the government on us, and we are free to love each other without worry of ever being thrown back into any silly Hunger Games.

Peeta stroked my face. "The best part is that we won't get any criticism for spending time together, and in each other's room. Effie always hated me for sneaking into your room at night. One time she pulled me aside and said, 'If I catch you in her room one more time, I will personally make sure you are dead in the Hunger Games.' I could have cared less about what she thought, there was no way I would ever leave you with those nightmares. It'll be nice spending time in the Capitol—I mean—The Hub celebrating these festivities. It will be especially great knowing that we will not have to deal with our impending death looming over our heads."

"Yeah, I've never seen the Capitol outside of the buildings we were escorted to the past couple of years. This should be an interesting visit for sure." Peeta and I discussed our visit for several days. Each time, our excitement grew until we genuinely looked forward to our visit to The Hub.

On the day of our departure, Haymitch walked over to our house and escorted us to the train station. The three of us rode the familiar looking train once again, this time in cheerfulness.

"The last time any of us rode this train, we were in an awful state," Peeta observed. "This train ride is actually enjoyable without the thought of going to die somewhere."

"I agree!" I said. "Haymitch on the other hand, just found something to drink."

"Well, he is a goner then. Let us go exploring and see if we can get ourselves into a little trouble." Peeta and I walked around the train, laughing and kissing the entire way. That is, until we bumped into someone unexpected.

"Excuse me, what exactly are you doing in public?" Effie said to us.

"It's just been so long since we—uh—have been able to be—uh—affectionate?" Peeta attempted.

"I'm afraid not, Mr. Mellark." Effie said. "Although, it was a nice try."

Peeta gave Effie a hug and said, "I missed you, Effie." She broke down in tears and hugged Peeta back. Effie hugged me as well and stared at the both of us.

"You both look so grown-up and mature! I can't believe that I'm standing here before the two biggest inspirations of my life. You both are still in love, oh! You two are such an inspiration." She fanned herself and walked away from Peeta and me. We both winked at each other and took off down the train again. The next week in The Hub was going to be a great one.


	4. Peeta's Doubts

Author's Note: So I thought I would add another chapter here before my normal Friday posting. This is because I'm going to be gone for one of my normal Friday postings here in about 2 ish weeks. But! I decided to make this one from PEETA's POV! So, I hope it's good, I definitely spent some time writing this one, and it was hard! So, I hope you all enjoy it, and I'll be back in a couple days with a posting for Friday! Enjoy, have fun with Peeta!

PEETA:

I looked out the window as Katniss napped in my arms. She looked so beautiful when she slept; often I wondered how I got so lucky to have this woman in my life. When she said she loved me not long ago, I didn't believe it at first. I thought it was part of the tracker jacker serum ruining my life like it had every day since I was first tortured. Every once in a while I doubted that this was all real: being back in District 12, having a house, a woman whom I love and supposedly loves me back, and even an optimistic future. Repetition helped initially with suppressing most of my false impressions about reality. Katniss helped me distinguish between nightmares and reality. During the war, the line between nightmare and reality was blurred, and very fine. Each morning I counted my blessings and found the list became shorter and shorter. Recently the list became longer, and it is a blessing to not have taken the suicide pill during the war. In a way, I am thankful for going through the Hunger Games—it's the only reason why Katniss and I are together now. I always thought Katniss would end up being with Gale Hawthorne—the only person on this planet who I wished I had killed when I had the chance during the war.

As kids, Gale and I did not get along; he bullied me and always teased me for helping my parents with the bakery. I couldn't help where I came from and grew up, the only thing I was told by teachers was that Gale was jealous that I came from a loving family that always had food. Whether that was true or not, it didn't justify Gale's bullying actions when we were kids. I never made fun of his family for not having enough food. I never said a word to Gale after his father died in the same mining accident in which Katniss's father died. In fact, my family and I made a cake for Gale's family free of charge only to have it thrown back at us saying, "We don't take charity from anyone." We weren't trying to be charitable, just the friendly family we were.

I really missed my family every once in a while. Even though my parents were very shy and never communicated well with me, they still raised me with the values that I held even through the Hunger Games. It was hard for me to fathom the bakery being gone when I first came back to District 12. I walked by it on the way back to my house—nothing but a few bricks left. I picked one up and carried it with me to remember my parents by, and I put it in a box in the house to keep it. If I ever started my own business, I would make sure that brick was placed somewhere within the walls of the building. After all, on the short list of people who I owe my life to, my parents made the list.

In fact, my father was the one who first told me about Katniss Everdeen. One day on the walk to school, my father pointed out this beautiful little girl who could make the birds go silent. I laughed at my father when he told me that story, but he said, "Listen to her voice, and you'll be sorry." I was never sorry that I listened to her voice. Whenever I had nightmares with the tracker jacker serum, they always started with the day I first saw Katniss. She walked up to the birds outside on the fence and started singing. Everyone thought she was weird, but I thought she was perfect. What I would have given to be able to sing with her. The tracker jacker serum allowed the birds to start attacking her—pecking at her head and face. It always made my heart break during those nightmares, seeing something so beautiful being devoured. My memory of when I first met Katniss has permanently been scarred from the tracker jacker serum, and I could never forgive anyone for that form of torture. The nightmare would progress into a phase where Katniss was being tortured in front of me, and it would always be my fault. The worst part always occurs when Gale taunts me about not being able to protect Katniss, or say that I am not worthy enough of her presence. Then, he kills her in front of me, just to make me mad. Somehow in the nightmare I am never able to save her—she's always just slightly out of my grasp. Not being able to save her is the most haunting part of all. I needed to figure out a way to stop these nightmares for once and all so I could finally live my life free of worry that the Capitol has still won, even though their totalitarian regime has been brought down to pieces.

Many of my torture sessions were based on reality, which is why it is so difficult to distinguish fact from fiction. Somehow, the Capitol knew how to tamper my memories, even the most cherished, and ruin them to the point of no return. I knew that someone was smart enough to use Gale against me as the worst form of torture. Whenever Gale Hawthorne so much as placed an arm on Katniss, I writhed in pain. Mostly it was out of fear for him hurting her in some way. I could not fathom the idea of someone other than myself taking care of her, however this imposter insisted on being able to win at everything in his life. This occurred even when we were kids. There was one day in specific that I always remembered:

"I see that you're eying my best friend," Gale said.

"Well, she is so beautiful. I love the way she sings to the birds quite often." I replied back.

"She sings to the birds because I taught her how to do that. She sings to the birds out of tribute to me. I'm the closest male figure she has right now, especially after her father died. We take comfort each other and we will always continue to do so until we die. I suggest you find another woman to feast your eyes on, because Katniss Everdeen will always be mine. "

He stormed away and went to be with Katniss. Every time this happened, my heart would break. I vowed to always keep my love to Katniss a secret because of my fear for Gale. When we became older, I still thought I never had a chance with Katniss, but not necessarily because of Gale. This memory was tampered by the Capitol and made even worse—ultimately it was that memory that made me hate Katniss Everdeen to the point where I thought it would never be reversed. When the Capitol kept me in prison during the war, they would always show propaganda videos of Katniss and Gale together to provoke hatred within me. Once they measured how steep the hatred was whenever Gale crossed the radar, somehow they programmed that into my system to be amplified. I could never unsee the images that left me with many of the scars I have across my wrists today.

Seeing Gale when I was first taken back to District 13 made me even more confused about who I was and what was actually reality. I had thought that Gale in real life was torturing Katniss, which led to my increased hatred of him. The first person I woke up to was Gale, saying that Katniss abandoned all feelings for me. The scene played over and over in my head—Gale comforting Katniss after I tried to attack her. I felt sick knowing that another man was comforting the woman I love. When Haymitch mentioned Gale working in District 2, Katniss's reaction looked half disgusted and half broken. I could never tell if Katniss truly made up her mind about whom she loved, especially after seeing her take so much comfort in Gale.

Could Katniss still be in love with Gale? After he sent that attack that ultimately killed Prim, I doubted she would ever go back to him. However, in the hospital, Gale would come visit me and brag about the amount of time he was spending with Katniss. I couldn't stand the thought of Katniss waking up in another man's arms, it made me want to stand up and throw something across the train. What if she got closer to Gale during the amount of time I was contained in the Capitol? Could he have manipulated her into believing she could be happy spending a life with him? These thoughts swirled around my head and needed to get some fresh air. Then, I remembered that my arms were wrapped around Katniss.

I looked down at Katniss; she was fast asleep and looked so peaceful. The nights where she didn't have nightmares always made me feel full of joy. It meant that nothing throughout the day upset her enough to haunt her in her dreams. I sometimes wished that my nightmares worked that way, because with Katniss around, I would never have another nightmare again. Even though she hasn't seen Gale since we left the Capitol, the threat of him being around still frightens me that she could someday leave and choose him instead. This fear made the possibility of getting rid of my nightmares impossible.

Katniss stirred and opened her eyes. She smiled and said, "How long have I been asleep?"

"Long enough," I said jokingly. "You slept free of nightmares though, and you slept very peacefully."

"That's good. It's becoming easier to sleep well when I have someone to wake up to everyday," she said.

I smiled and gave her a gentle squeeze with my arms. Her brown eyes were smoldering and she looked so beautiful in her natural state; I couldn't help but stare at her beautiful appearance.

"What are you staring at, Peeta?" Katniss asked.

"Just your beautiful eyes, they capture me and keep me a prisoner. I thought I had enough of being held hostage, but your eyes could keep me a prisoner forever and I would never complain one word of it to you."

Katniss blushed and said, "You always know exactly what to say. I will forever be in debt to your romantic words of kindness. All I can say with conviction to ever think about repaying you is saying that I love you. Which, I do, a lot. Peeta, I love you so much. Thank you, for being the kindest man I have ever met. I love you more than I ever loved my bow and hunting." She kissed my cheek, and I knew she meant it if she said that she loved something more than the only thing that ever gave her joy throughout her life.

'Do you love me more than Gale?' I thought. I wished I could ask this, but I know it would only upset Katniss. Right now the both of us needed consistency, springing uncomfortable questions such as that would only send her into a frenzy—one that would take much time to recover. One day that question would have to be asked, and her mind may have changed by that time. My heart tensed up as I regretted thinking about the day Katniss would leave me to go back to Gale. I was doubtful that Katniss would stay with me throughout the rest of our lives, especially after growing up with Gale. Katniss and I have only really known each other for a couple years, and it is definitely known that we don't know everything about each other. My heart lifted thinking about staying up late at night getting to know Katniss better throughout the rest of our lives, but the probability slowly decreases with each passing day.

"Katniss, will you excuse me?" I asked squeezing her hand.

"What's wrong?" She asked confused at my tone.

"I just need to get some fresh air, I think I've been on this train a little too long," I said covering up my nervousness.

"Okay," she said. "Please, don't be gone long, we can't be far away now!"

"Don't worry, I'll never leave you Katniss." I got up and went to the edge of the compartment and out the door to the balcony. It was beautiful outside, the sun was high overhead and rays of happiness illuminated the land. I took a deep breath and decided that for now I could only be as happy as I allowed myself. I determined that in order to be happy, I needed to utilize the time I have left with Katniss. Returning to the compartment, I put my arm around Katniss and kissed her. My heart instantly filled with joy as I aimed to spend every possible moment with Katniss.


	5. Festivities at The Hub

Author's Note: So I'm slowly getting some more reviews! Yay! Thank you all for your input and feedback! I really appreciate it! To clarify one review I received from my last chapter about a certain character named Gale. I'm not slandering the person who wrote the review at all, I am more taking it to spell out clearly my aim for the character Gale in this story. Some of you may not like this very much, but Gale is meant to be more of a villain in this story. My reasoning behind this was that all good stories have a villain and I wanted to have one. So, this person brought to my attention that Suzanne Collins did not portray Gale in the fashion in which I'm portraying him in this story. And I appreciate that because I guess I did kinda blow him out of the water a little bit, but that's kinda a flaw that goes with the story a little bit. Soooo, if you all would like to pretend with me that Gale is evil, then things will work much better! This chapter should make it pretty clear about my intentions about the character, and I'm sorry I didn't clarify that before my last chapter! Anyway, this should be a pretty fun chapter, it's longer than any other I've produced so far! Enjoy, and have fun! Don't forget to please send a review! PS. The next chapter in the works is going to be a Gale POV. Just sayin'. ;) -KJ

Chapter 4: Festivities at the Hub

Katniss POV:

When the train pulled into the station at The Hub, Peeta and I anxiously awaited seeing the entirety of the area. Every time we had been to the Capitol, we were always escorted straight to our living quarters and into the hands of our prep teams. This time, Effie had a giant grin on her face.

"This time, I will show you where you two will be staying as guests of honor, and then you are on your own until approximately two hours before tonight's dinner. You can use that time however you like, just as long as I can depend on your punctuality this evening."

"We can actually explore this area?" I asked.

"Sure, The Hub is in its rebuilding phase so it isn't magnificent yet, but I know it will look grand in a year's time."

Peeta and I exchanged excited glances and grabbed our bags to head up to our accommodations. The awkwardness from the early afternoon seemed to melt away as we lined up at the door to exit the train. I worried about him sometimes, maybe this trip was too much for him to take seeing as his last visit to this area was one full of torture and unpleasant memories. I shook off the worries and glanced out the window to the train station. When we stepped off the train, we noted a banner that read, "The Hub: Communication, Cooperation, Collaboration." We looked around at our surroundings, which appeared to be much different than the Capitol. The buildings seemed taller and more elaborate, each with its unique design. A word that didn't come to mind was uniformity. The Capitol always was about being uniform, with no variables to be seen. Although evidence of bombings and destruction were evident, many cranes illuminated the cityscape as if nothing had ever happened. We progressed around The Hub to our lodging. To our relief, we were not placed in the same building as when we lived in the Capitol during the Hunger Games. The building we walked into this time was even nicer and more elaborate. When Effie opened the entire floor that belonged to us, she said, "Let me show you to your rooms." She walked down a long hallway and pointed to one door and said, "Katniss, this is your room. I'll let you unpack or whatever it is that you need to do and you can come join us in the dining room for tea if you would like. " She motioned for Peeta to go with her to the opposite side of the Penthouse.

I walked inside of my room to find the biggest bed I have ever seen. The sheets were silk and satin and the bed itself had at least ten pillows on it. I placed my bags into the enormous walk-in closet and examined the bathroom. It had a full sized Jacuzzi tub and several different types of shampoos to choose. I walked back out into the bedroom and flopped onto the bed. The mattress was more comfortable than anything I could imagine. I must have dozed off for quite a while, because the next thing I knew, there was a knock on the door. I wandered over and opened it to find Peeta in the entrance.

"How long have I been asleep?" I groggily asked.

"Well, I can't answer that, I didn't even know you were asleep! I thought you were ignoring me," Peeta said. There was his awkwardness again, I hoped this pattern would not be a reoccurring one throughout the trip. I decided to pretend like nothing was the matter and treat him normally to avoid any future awkward encounters.

"Oh, never. The mattress was just so comfortable that I succumbed to sleep."

"Well I'm sorry I woke you up, I just wanted to see if you wanted to go exploring for an hour before we have to get dressed for the opening festivities tonight."

I looked back at the bed, longing to sleep in it again. I looked at Peeta, and imagined how comfortable I would be with his arms wrapped around me, as I was asleep in the very comfortable bed. "Well, if we only have an hour we should probably just save it until tomorrow, don't you think?" I asked.

"If you want to go back to sleep, it's all right with me," Peeta reluctantly said. I could tell he really wanted to go exploring.

"Would you like to take a nap with me?" I said coyly.

"I suppose, more sleep never hurt anyone." Peeta hopped into bed with me and I felt the most comfortable and relaxed than ever before. In an hour's time, Effie knocked on my door.

"Katniss, are you in there? I hope you are, because it's time for you to get up and get dressed." She opened the door and found Peeta and I wrapped up in each other's arms.

"I will not have any of this! If anyone finds out about this, my head will be gone!"

"Effie, relax," Peeta said sitting up. "Nothing is happening like that. I mean we are together, that's no surprise. Why is this so wrong?"

"Well, we just don't want any scandals while the country is so new. The slightest thing will set people on edge and try to overrun everything again. I do not want another war started here."

"Why would Katniss and I in bed together cause a scandal?" Peeta asked defensively.

"What happens if Katniss gets pregnant before the two of you are married?"

"Effie, how do you know we aren't married, didn't you watch my interview at the Hunger Games last year?"

"I knew the part about being pregnant was a lie, Katniss's face said it all to me. But the two of you aren't legally married, therefore this shouldn't be happening."

"Effie, if I assure you that no pregnancies are happening, will you lay off us?"

"No. It could still mean that you guys are doing something that shouldn't be happening under this roof!"

"Effie I can assure you, Katniss and I are…_virgins_…unless Katniss has something to share about Gale that I don't know…"

That did it. If Peeta's attitude on the train earlier was about Gale then I didn't want to be a part of it. I got up and stormed off out of the room. Not only does Effie think I've lost my virginity, but she now thinks that I have slept with multiple people. Now Peeta believed the same thing? Apparently no one except Prim knew me, and even then she did not know the entire truth about everything until the last few days of her life. In District 12, it was always more proper to wait until marriage to become intimate. It was scandalous if someone was caught with another person before marriage. I couldn't believe more than anything that Peeta was even remotely suggesting that I slept with Gale. My anger flared as I thought about Gale and his betrayal with my family and me. It was wrong that his attack killed Prim and even thinking about the times where I kissed him made my blood boil. I grabbed a jacket and went to get some air. I opened the door out of the penthouse and found four people standing outside the door.

"Katniss Everdeen?" one of them asked.

"Yes?" I responded dryly.

"We are your _new_ prep team!" a different one responded.

I thought about Cinna and tears floated down my face. I wanted so desperately for him to be around and give advice to me. I looked up at the four people standing around me and quickly wiped off my face.

"Okay, where should we go then?" I responded to the eager people.

"Well, we are going to go ahead and proceed to tonight's venue, if that's all right with you?"

I looked back and wondered where Effie and Peeta were, but I was too angry to face either one of them.

"Okay," I said. "Let's go now then, I have everything I need."

The four stylists led me to an elaborate vehicle and drove around the downtown area. I looked out the window in awe as I examined The Hub compared to the Capitol. Parks existed in the midst of rubble, and the whole city appeared brighter in appearance than the Capitol ever looked. We arrived at a venue that I had never seen before. The building was tall and elaborate, with gold trim lacing the outside. I wondered if this was the new form of the justice building.

"What building is this?"

"It is one of our new parliament buildings. I believe this is the state representative building. The parade stretches all the way across the town and ends at the new presidential house."

"Parade?" I asked alarmed.

"Yes, tonight to kick of festivities there will be a night parade starting at this venue, and ending at the president's house. This will be followed by a reception and fireworks."

"Oh, I had no idea," I said confused. "I've never seen a parade other than the short ones before the Hunger Games each year. Just as long as I don't have to go end up fighting anything or compete for sponsors I'll be okay."

"Don't be silly," the driver of the car said. "This parade is honoring our victories and our new beginning as a country. You are the guest of honor in this parade, therefore you are the last person that everyone will see."

"What about Peeta, will he be with me?"

"No, he will be the very first person to start the parade. He's the grand marshal, so-to-speak."

"Why don't Peeta and I get to walk together?" I asked.

"We wanted to spread out the excitements of the parade! Both of you deserve your time to shine."

It suddenly dawned on me that I had to smile and wave during this parade. During the Quarter Quell I got to avoid the audience all together. This time, I would have to make sure I yet again impressed the crowd. This time, it was to avoid war.

"What kind of costume will I be wearing? My Mockingjay outfit?"

"Oh no, most certainly not," one of the other stylists said. "This time you will be wearing an outfit that will really…glow." The other stylists laughed and I was almost relieved that I didn't have to wear my outfit made for battle. I was surprised I wasn't going to be placed in either of Cinna's other dress designs, or even the costume from the first Hunger Games that I participated in that made such an impression. I guess the new government did not want to consider me the girl on fire anymore, which was just fine with me. We stepped out of the car and I realized I did not know who any of these people were.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't ask for your names. Forgive my rudeness, please."

"I am Uni," said the stylist with blue hair. He was tall and lanky, and most certainly the most stylishly dressed. "I am the head designer of this team."

"I am Jenesequa, Jenes for short." She had a short, pixie look about her. She had her hair styled in a long Mohawk with the hair grown out around it.

"I am Fun," a third one said with a tone of dissatisfaction. "My parents named me that because they thought I was a 'fun surprise.' I hate that they named me that. Nevertheless, Fun is my name and that is what I am called." This led me to laugh a little bit; perhaps he will be the most "fun" to be around. I snickered as I thought of jokes about Fun.

"Last, but not least, I am Leroc." She was a picturesque person. The closest I have ever seen to a model in my entire life. She looked rather normal as well, the rest were dressed rather elaborately as per Capitol normal. They escorted me into the building where people were running around in an anxious fervor.

"Are all these people in the parade?" I asked. There were several people wandering around in the building. It almost made me feel claustrophobic.

"Yes!" Fun said. "This is going to be the event of the year, that is, until the closing festivities I'm sure."

"You are in for a real treat tonight," Jenes said. "I think you will really like what we have prepared for you as well."

"We never wanted to mask what Cinna did for you, rest his soul. He was a great friend of ours, and we loved him so. He left us in charge of your wardrobe right before he died. We knew that we had to do something that would honor his memory. This time we left it simple, although for the reception tonight we will put you in an elegant dress that we believe will accentuate the best parts of your figure. Although, you have lost an incredible amount of weight, so we might have to let you try on both of your outfits for the evening and see where we go from there." Uni said.

They led me to a dressing room and allowed me some time alone to dress. I liked this new prep team, they were not invasive like my old prep team was. No one could ever replace Cinna, however, this group was most certainly adequate.

I put on what seemed to be a uni-tard with dots on the outside. The costume even had a hood, which covered up the entirety of my hair. I looked at myself in the mirror and thought, "There is no way Cinna would have ever let me wear this." The designers came back into the room with excitement.

"Are you ready to turn it on?" Leroc said.

"What do you mean, turn it on?" I asked a little worried.

"Well first we need to turn out the lights, and then we'll flip the switch," Fun said. They turned off the lights and switched on my costume. The most brilliant light radiated from the costume. An orb feeling illuminated the room. It truly looked spectacular. I stepped back to examine myself—somehow the light didn't blind me or anyone else in the room, but it looked so bright anyway. I twirled around a little bit and started to laugh. I loved how I looked.

"You are the light that guided us home," Leroc said. That is why you are lighting up the night sky tonight. You guided the soldiers home and gave them inspiration to keep going. You are our hero, Katniss Everdeen."

This statement took me aback. I never thought of myself as being a hero before, nor did I ever want to feel that way. I thanked the team for their compliments and gathered around with them to wait for my turn to line up for the parade. I eagerly looked for Peeta, wanting to apologize for my irrational behavior earlier in the day. There were so many people in the building, however, that I could not distinguish between the faces. Part of me was still frustrated with Peeta for thinking I ever was romantically involved with someone other than him (even though all we have ever done was kiss). More than anything, I knew my frustration stemmed from the thought that if there had been no war, Peeta and I could have already been _married_ by now. Even though I never wanted to get married when I was younger, Peeta was genuinely a person I thought I could spend the rest of my life with as partners and soulmates. For now, it was difficult to even fathom marriage because the both of us had been so drained emotionally that anything involving commitment could potentially set the other off in a frenzy. This thought disheartened me, but I shrugged it off as members of the parade began to line up in fashion.

I took my place at the back of the building and waited for everyone to file out into the street. Some people walked, others were on unicycles. Many took their place on floats and elaborate displays that emphasized unity. Everyone was glowing in some way, shape, or form. I waited to turn on my costume until the opportunity was right. I enjoyed watching many of the floats, although it was not long before it was my turn to line up in the parade. Expecting to walk I examined my shoes to see if they would carry me throughout the entire parade.

"Right this way Ms. Everdeen!" Uni said. "We are all riding with you too, your float looks fabulous!" He took me over to the float, which was an elaborate display. It had my Mockingjay pin blown up to larger-than-life size. At the base of the pin, there was a spot for me to sit. I turned on my costume, which fit perfectly with the Mockingjay pin on the float. The rest of my prep team stationed themselves on the float as well, and within minutes it began to move.

We wound through the streets of The Hub, waving to the residents of the area. Everyone looked so happy and went crazy for my costume. I smiled and enjoyed seeing the night sky lit up with different forms of glowing things. All of the streetlights were turned off, so everyone in the crowd had to decorate to illuminate the night sky. This seemed like a very long parade, especially considering that the only parades I had ever seen were Hunger Games parades. It must have been a few miles long, as The Hub is a large area, and the president's house was nowhere in sight. Eventually the float turned onto a street where a bright building was lit up, along with the largest crowd I had ever seen. Cheers came from each direction and I boldly waved and tried to appear as strong as I could for the people of the country. I saw light flashing from every direction and I knew cameras were all over me. A roaring came from the crowd as they shouted my name over and over. When the float reached the steps of the president's house, I was ushered to the side and into a different entrance other than the main one.

"We have to get you changed, and in a hurry! The party is about to start!" Leroc said. Quick, follow me, I know which room is designated as yours."

The prep team left me alone to change into my evening dress. It was a stunning floor-length gown that was interlaced with the glowing lights from my parade costume. However, these lights were subtle and were not nearly as bright because fabric covered the top layer of the lights. A satin strand of fabric was tied into a bow underneath my bust line and truly accentuated the rest of the dress. I had never worn a dress as trendy as this before. I secretly wished I could keep it for the rest of my life and wear it for every nice occasion I ever encountered again. My prep team walked back inside and examined their handy work on the dress.

"Uni, you really outdid yourself this time. She looks great!" Jenes said. "The lights look perfect and she is truly radiant."

"We need to get her into hair and makeup, and fast!" Fun said. They sat me down quickly and went to town on my face and hair. Within minutes, my hair was done into an elaborate, yet elegant hairstyle. Small strands of lights were woven into one of the braids. I looked at myself in the mirror again and saw Prim in my face. I never realized how having my hair done in this fashion really showed my father's looks in Prim and myself. I wished Prim could be here to see me in this dress. I also wished my mother could be here seeing this and hugging me saying that everything lost was worth it in the war.

My prep team examined me once again and said, "She's ready to go. This is a great first meeting with her. Think about where we will be by the end of the week! Cinna would be so proud of us."

"Thank you all," I said. "I really miss Cinna, but wearing a dress as beautiful as this really made me appreciate all the work that you all and Cinna did for me. I am truly in your debt."

Leroc had tears in her eyes. Uni and Fun were snickering at her while still being considerate of my kind words. I noticed a change in myself—I had never been appreciative of Cinna's work when he was alive. I knew that I needed to be a more outgoing person, and that I needed to appreciate everything I have been honored to have thus far in my life. I have taken so much for granted, especially my family. I made a pact to honor those in my life through my actions.

I put a smile on my face and nodded to my prep team. They led me upstairs and said, "This is where we leave you. We need to change too, you know!" they hurried away, eager to start the festivities. I walked into a grand room, full of people. Instantly I was greeted by several people and introduced to several more. Many people participated in the parade, and many more were government officials. Most of these officials came from humble beginnings like myself. A few of them were even from the former District 12. I was surprised I never met or recognized these people. I asked the members from District 12 how they came to work in the new government. People in The Hub and other newly formed states had elected all of them as well. Democracy helped these people arrive in new positions. I was pleasantly surprised to hear how well these people worked in the new system, working to make the entire country a better place.

I wandered over to a table full of delicious foods. Each one had a sign indicating where the ingredients came from, and how they were woven into the dish. I looked to see which ingredients Ashland produced. Each dish had a different ingredient from Ashland, and each dish included ingredients from each state. The thought of collaborative food pleased me; the tastes pleased me even more. I grabbed a pastry when I felt a tap on my shoulder, I was sure it was Peeta behind me, ready to apologize. I turned around trying to beat him to the punch and apologize for my rash actions.

"Peeta—" I started.

"Hey Catnip." Gale said slyly. I froze in my spot and dropped my pastry on the ground like a fool.

"You can't even hold your food around me anymore, I see that you must have missed me," Gale started. "I must say though, after brushing the crumbs off, you do look ravishing."

I started to feel sick. Where was Peeta when I needed him? He couldn't be that far away, there were only so many people in this building.

"What are you doing here Gale? I thought this was suppose to be a private party?"

"I was invited to this party too, as an honored guest. Working as the chief of the military has its perks too, you know."

"Oh, that's right, you're still developing weapons that brutally kill people, I almost forgot. You know the reason why I didn't? Because of Prim, that's why."

Gale's face turned into a somber one. "You know I didn't mean that attack to get Prim."

"Do I? You seemed pretty happy with it after it went off, Gale. You know how much Prim meant to me, and yet you did it anyway."

"I didn't have a choice, Katniss. Some of those attacks are the reason why we stand here as a new country. That is why we can celebrate tonight. Can't we put all of this behind us, at least for one night? I haven't seen you in so long and I really missed you, Katniss." He seemed sincere enough, although I didn't know if I could really trust him enough to consider his words. An image of Prim came into my thoughts and sadness crept up on me.

Gale put his arm around me as a camera came to flash a picture of us. I fakely smiled so I wouldn't start a riot. When the photographer left, I stepped on his foot.

"Do not put your arm around me like that again." I hissed.

"Not even for old times sake?" Gale asked slyly.

"Come on Gale, I'm taken."

"Oh come on, not by the bread maker. You can do better than _that_. Find someone with a real job, Catnip."

"Who are you to dictate who I can and cannot be with, Gale?"

"Because, you were going to choose me at one point. You never could make up your mind Katniss, how do you know that this guy is the right one for you?"

"I realized that our personalities are too similar, Gale. I can't be with someone who fights fire with fire. I need the tranquility to counteract the fire. That was never something you could offer me." Gale's face grew tense and somber. He thought hard about his next move to convince me that I was wrong.

"I still love you, Katniss," Gale said in the gentlest tone. "I'm genuinely sorry what happened to your sister. If I could take it back, I would have made sure she was left in District 13 before that explosion went off."

"But Gale, it still did go off and it killed her. There's no way to bring her back to be with us. Some things are just very hard to forgive. I don't know if I could ever forgive what you did. It just would take a lot of time to be able to rebuild any trust in you again. How do I know that what you say is true? You say that you love me, but if you truly did, you would have listened to me more and not innovated those gruesome attack methods."

"You're right Katniss." Gale pensively gazed at my face. "I wish there was a way I could immediately gain your trust again, but I know it will take time. I do still think the world of you, and I wish I could make you mine. Someday, you will be mine."

"Gale, it's too late. I already love Peeta. I realized that the feelings that I thought I once had for you were feelings of family. You always were a part of my family. Peeta and I can take care of each other. Throughout the entire war I thought I craved your attention, but I realized that I craved physical attention. Even when Peeta wanted to murder me underneath the tracker jacker serum, I still hoped for his return so we could love each other again."

"You just wait, some day you are going to get bored with the bread maker. I can offer you the life you've always wanted. You are just going to give it all up to go back and live in that godforsaken area that was once called District 12. I will never give up on fighting for your heart, Katniss. I may or may not fight fairly." He almost grabbed my arm, but another voice interrupted us.

"There you are, I started to worry that you had left!" Peeta said with perfect timing, as always. I immediately grabbed his arm and looped my own through it. I automatically felt at ease and less threatened by Gale's emotional attacks. "Who are you talking to here Kat—Gale?"

"Hello _bread maker_" Gale said coldly.

"I-I am actually not a baker anymore, Gale. I paint and sell my artwork now. I think my baking days are over."

"Good," Gale started. "It was always so _girlie_ of you to bake cakes and frost them with elaborate patterns. Real men need supportive jobs. Although, I suppose painting isn't much more masculine than _baking things_."

"And blowing stuff up is masculine, Gale?" Peeta's arm moved to be grasped around my waist. His grip progressively tightened.

"It's better than sitting around all day long in an abandoned state."

"At least I have someone who makes me happier than anything else in the world," Peeta said as he gazed at my face. I began to blush.

"That is a rather large perk," Gale said. "Giving up sex is the worst part of the job. Although, when I get time off the base, it's well worth the wait."

Peeta looked at me intently. "No Peeta, I never slept with Gale! We just kissed once or twice, that is it!"

"Unfortunately all we ever did was kiss. It was more than just once, and you initiated it every once in a while too, Catnip."

"I'm not denying that, though I wish I could forget about it," I said.

"You must be one lucky guy Peeta," Gale said facing Peeta squarely. "You get to bang one of the most beautiful girls here tonight. I don't know how you managed it, but maybe I should take a hint from you. Tell me, how is it?" Gale's eyebrows moved up and down suggestively. "Make me jealous of what I'm missing, please."

"Uh-uh…" Peeta was grasping for any kind of lie.

"Don't tell me, you two haven't slept together?" Gale said.

"We _have_," I said triumphantly. "Although, coming back with severe medical trauma from the war has halted everything emotionally and physically." I hoped that was a good enough cover.

"Oh shut up Catnip. We all know that you wouldn't give up anything until you get married to the guy. Seeing that you don't have a ring on your finger tells me that you are still a free woman. I'm surprised you don't even have an engagement ring on your finger. Why so slow, baker? You really never could act on anything, even in school. The only reason why you even have her now is because of the Hunger Games. Think about it, if the two of you hadn't participated in the Hunger Games, you would still be baking in your kitchen, wishing that you could be more of a man. Katniss and I would still be hanging out every day and hunting together. The two of us probably would have been married by now. Funny how things change, I'm now making more money than I ever thought, and you two are still stuck in District 12. One day, I will have everything that I want in life, this is why I keep fighting for you, Katniss. Believe me, after you spend a night with me, you will never want to go back to a bread maker, or a painter, or whatever girlie thing he decides to do next. If you excuse me, I see a pretty lady without a drink; I think she should be sweet talked into a night with Gale Hawthorne. This isn't over, Katniss. You will be hearing from me again." He bent and quickly kissed my cheek and walked off without another word.

I took Peeta's hand and ushered him outside of the grand room. Tears immediately filled my eyes and he held his arms out to warmly embrace me. I cried in his shoulder, not caring if my makeup ran everywhere. I was thankful that Peeta was the one I was sharing this moment with, not Gale.

"I'm so sorry Katniss," Peeta started. "I'm sorry for ever accusing of anything without getting your side of the story first. I'm also sorry I couldn't find you earlier and that you got ambushed by Gale. I saw him earlier and knew that it would be trouble. I spent the whole time looking for you after that. Don't take any of his words to heart, he was just trying to make you feel guilty and convince you that he is the right person for you."

I sobbed a little more and began to sniffle. "He-he tried to apologize for P-P-Prim. Then he said he wouldn't have changed anything about his attack except that she was at home, safely. All of those people, Peeta… those cruel bombings…those were all Gale. He still said he loved me, Peeta. How could someone who has caused another person so much pain look her in the eye and still say that he loves her?" I began to sob some more.

"I know you and Gale had history together, Katniss. You can't replace those feelings you once had for him. I understand this now. If it means I have to share you or let you go, that's something I have to face with I guess."

I immediately looked up and angrily said, "Don't let me go. Don't you _ever_ let me go. I'm _never_ going to end up with Gale, Peeta Mellark. Promise me that you will never let me go, especially to _him._"

"Katniss Everdeen," Peeta started. "I promise that I will never let you go to anyone. I love you too much to do that. It fills my heart that you don't want to end up with Gale, and now I will never doubt you again. If you do change your mind someday, I will not hold you from your decision, although I have the right to fight too."

"You've already won though, don't you see, Peeta?"

"Yes, I do. I'm the luckiest winner in the entire country too." He bent down and kissed me. This was a new kind of kiss, however. This kiss was intense and full of fire—very strange coming from Peeta Mellark. When we broke apart, Peeta said, "Are you okay to go back to the party? I'm sure our absence has been noted by now. I'll keep you away from Gale at all costs. If we go dance, it will be the easiest to avoid him."

"Sure, we can go back. You just said that because you want to show off your dancing skills. Do I look okay?" I asked gesturing toward my face.

"Katniss, you've never looked more beautiful."

I blushed and said, "Well thanks, but seriously, did my makeup run at all?"

"No, I don't think so. It doesn't even look like you were crying."

"Okay then, let's go back and enjoy this party."

Peeta led me back to the room and onto the dance floor. Many people were watching us, and occasionally would interrupt us for a brief conversation. Eventually President Paylor interrupted us. The music stopped and his announcement rang throughout the building, "Everyone! I hope you all enjoyed your evening here at the presidential residence. Thank you all for coming; it has been a spectacular evening. I'm afraid that our evening must come to a close, however. Before you all leave, I have a special treat outside on the lawn. If you all could swiftly exit outside via the back entrance, the show will begin soon."

Peeta and I walked outside to the back lawn and noticed that the hill slanted downward toward a harbor. I had no idea that there was a harbor in The Hub. We walked as close as we could toward the water, and Peeta offered me his jacket. Once everyone made their way outside and positioned himself or herself, I became very confused.

"What's going on out here, why did we all have to come outside?" I asked.

"I don't know, but I'm sure we'll see soon enough. If anything, it's wonderful to be able to look out at the water. The moon illuminates your face beautifully here."

I blushed again, but it couldn't be seen in the night sky. All of a sudden, fireworks let up the night sky in a spectacular display. Peeta wrapped me in his arms and we stood to watch the fireworks. We kissed and ignored the rest of the world. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Gale with a bottle of wine in his hands. He was alone, and drinking it without caring if anyone could see him. My heart sank slightly as I saw the true brokenness of Gale Hawthorne. I felt like apologizing to him and offering friendship, but then I remembered that his motives were not ones I wanted to be tangled up with anymore. Once the fireworks were over, Peeta and I wandered back inside to await further instructions. Gale passed us and threw his empty wine bottle in the trashcan. He went over to a couple of very drunk girls and started talking with them. Eventually the three of them left the party. I fought back tears and wondered if I should have let Gale believe that I still loved him, or at least wanted to be friends.

"There's nothing you can do, Katniss," Peeta said almost reading my mind. He ruined his own chances by having an uncontrollable temper. Now he tries to fill the void of his life with materialism, whereas we fill our lives with love."

I smiled slightly and thought about Peeta's words. He was absolutely right. "You're right Peeta, I don't care if you are a baker, or a painter, or the world's best fashion designer. Whatever makes you happy will make me happy too."

"Well, I don't know about a fashion designer, but the person that makes me happy is standing right next to me. So, since you make me happy, therefore you have to be happy that you make me happy. Got it?"

I chuckled and said, "I think so. Let's go back to where we are staying, I'm exhausted from this evening."

"One more thing first," Peeta said and bent down and kissed me. "I want to freeze this moment in time, who knows when we'll ever get to spend time in The Hub like this ever again." He kissed me again and we knew cameras were fastened on us, this time it wasn't for show. We walked to the entrance where my prep team was waiting for us.

"Everyone just adored you two tonight. I think you all may have inspired a lot of hope tonight. It was a great idea to make you two match also." I looked at Peeta's jacket (which I had given back already) and noticed that there were small sparkling lights on it too. I couldn't believe that I didn't notice this about him this evening. His bow tie even had twinkling lights on it. I unfastened Peeta's bow tie to examine it closer.

"How did you all do this?" I curiously asked.

"Katniss, I didn't think you ever took an interest in fashion," Peeta said.

"Well normally I don't, but this bow tie is fascinating," I said admiringly.

"We worked hard on it," Uni said.

"Thank you all, for giving us a wonderful evening." I said with deep gratitude.

"Well, here we are, back at your living quarters. We'll be in contact with you again soon. By the way, we left some presents for the both of you. You will have to look it up in the closet though." Uni laughed and helped us out of the vehicle. Peeta and I opened up the door to our quarters to find Effie sitting in the living room with the television on and a glass of wine in her hands. I had never seen Effie drink before, this couldn't be a good thing.

"Effie?" I asked curiously.

"Oh! You all are home!" She said with gusto. "You guys were a smashing hit tonight, would you like to see the highlights of the parade on the news?"

"Sure," I said. "I want out of this dress first though." I ran and changed and came back to find a plate full of cookies and milk next to a very large comfortable chair. I sat down and feasted on the cookies while Effie ran back the news to the parade.

"Just look at you, Peeta!" Effie said. "I've never seen you smile that big."

"I had a lot of fun, Effie. Wearing a costume like that was a blast." Peeta's parade costume literally glowed. Different chemicals were interlaced with the fabrics to produce the biggest neon green glow. It was almost a tie-dyed mix of glowing green and black fabric. The cameras panned to the crowd of people who were holding up signs with Peeta's name on it. The crowd went wild for him. The rest of the parade was very entertaining. When the camera panned to my float, the crowd roared with excitement. The signs went up and people cheered and chanted my name. I didn't realize how much people idolized the Mockingjay. I had no idea that there was still a large following. I knew that I had to keep being the Mockingjay to give the country hope and strength through this special time. At the end of the parade, the president came onto the camera and said, "Dear folks of Paloma, enjoy this week of festivities!"

"Paloma?" I said.

"That's the name of this country! It means 'Dove'," Effie laughed. "You didn't know that?"

"N-No." I said. "We don't hear anything out in District—I mean Ashland."

'Well, that will all change soon. After this week's festivities, all these cranes that you see around The Hub will be sent to each of the states to help rebuild the country. It surprised me to hear that other areas of the country will be changing. When the country was still Panem, the Capitol could care less about any of the Districts as long as they produced enough for the Captiol. This is going to be a different game, I realized. I hoped that it wouldn't fall apart.

I stretched and yawned and said, "I'm very exhausted. I think I might go to bed. Good night everyone." Waiting for Peeta to follow me I awkwardly paused at the entrance of the living room.

"Good night, Katniss" Effie said. I wandered off wondering why Peeta didn't come join me. He probably wanted to wait until Effie went to bed to sneak into my room. I knew that if I went straight to bed I would immediately fall asleep, so I took a shower first and did everything I could to try to stay awake and wait for Peeta. I propped myself up on the pillows and waited. My eyelids became droopy, but I needed to wait for Peeta. I had several questions that I wanted to ask him in private. Eventually the door opened a slight crack. I pretended to be asleep and opened one eye. It was Effie, checking up on me to make sure I had gone to sleep. She turned off the light and walked down the hallway. A few minutes later, the door opened again and Peeta walked inside.

He snuck over to the bed and tried to slip under the covers trying not to wake me.

"Peeta, I'm awake."

"Oh, I figured that since the light was turned off you were asleep."

"Effie turned it off on me. I have a feeling she's going to check on us in the morning."

"Well, that's just the risk I'm going to take."

"Peeta, can we talk about something?"

"Of course Katniss, anything."

I rolled over to face him and took his hand and placed it around me. This could be a very long conversation.


	6. Gale's Revenge

Author's Note: Happy Friday everyone! Also, happy Olympics! I'm anxiously awaiting the chance to watch the opening ceremonies (which is probably where everyone is right now). But, here on the West Coast (west coast= best coast!) we haven't seen it yet, so I'm excited. I've seen some spoiler pics though, and I'm excited. Anyway, this is coming pretty late in the day, but I was at work all day and packing. I'm going to be GONE next Friday because I'll be in the depths of the wilderness wrangling around band kids (it's heaven on earth, really!) with no cell or internet service! So, sorry guys. I'll update as soon as I can again, but maybe I'll write while inspired watching the sun set over the mountains or something. Anyway, this chapter is about Gale and his thougths. So, get ready to twirl your mustache as you learn more about our villain! And yes, I know this isn't how Suzanne Collins pictured him, this is completely on my own account that I did this. It shows my own opinions about Gale and frankly he just makes a good villain. ;) To write this chapter I basically turned on a bunch of dubstep and angry music, so sorry if it seems harsh. ENJOY! See you guys in TWO WEEKS! (If not less).

Gale's POV—Scene: Begins at the party of the President's house.

I could not believe what I saw—the most ravishing woman I had ever seen in my life, standing with the man who I have never hated more in my life. I could not fathom the amount of anger in my being; I was humiliated in public by the pair of them. They stomped all over my pride and shoved their romance in my face like I was some kind of villain.

Primrose Everdeen. I never knew the girl very well, but she did seem to be nice. I understood Katniss had a close bond to her sister, but only because she had to take care of her more than her own mother could. Katniss should not have been angry that it was the attack that I designed that killed Prim. Her death was inevitable. Whether she would have actually gone into the Seventy-Fourth Hunger Games to compete, or fight in the Great War, Prim was destined to die. Prim was never good at defending herself, mostly because she was either babied by Katniss or her mother. Katniss should have realized this ages ago. In this day and age, knowing survival tactics is crucial to make it out alive. It was ridiculous that I was blamed for Prim's death.

_It's not as though I used that attack specifically to kill Prim._ I said that to myself over and over again, especially after Prim died. I was helping the war effort; I wanted the war to be over. Innocent civilians were going to and did die in the war. Katniss should be angry with herself for killing people in the Hunger Games, it was not their faults that they were reaped into those as much as it was hers. Pulling out those berries during the Hunger Games started this whole revolution, which caused thousands of deaths. She also killed people during the war too, I saw her. It was ridiculous to throw away sixteen years of friendship down the drain just because she thought I had something against her weakly little sister. I knew people that died too; I wished that all of my family were still alive too after they were mercilessly killed in the bombing of District 12. The key to moving on for me was not whining about it all the time. I bet the Baker put up with a lot of whining during the Hunger Games, and even now, too. For a minute I pitied the Baker about having to put up with whining.

Maybe, in the grand scheme of things, they were destined to be together. Whining must have greater chemistry than two best friends that shared sixteen years together. I should have taken Katniss and ran away with her when she offered in the not too distant past. The revolution may not have happened in the fullest extent if we had run away together. We would have been happy had we succeeded in running away. By now, we could have made the commitment of our lives to each other—or at least been having a lot of sex by now. My thoughts drifted away to a distant land until a terse thought interrupted any fantasy in which I consumed my thoughts.

Who am I kidding? I have a lot of sex now! Maybe not as often as some of the guys in my rank, but, I still get out and have fun every once in a while. Just the other day I had a great time with Lisa. Or, was her name Linda? Regardless, she made things a little more exciting around the training facility. I hope I got her number; she should get a call from me, unless I find someone else better.

There it was—that knot wrenching feeling again. I know I was never as happy as I should have been at this point in my life. I had a dream job and I finally made it out of District 12; I absolutely was thankful for that. I didn't have to deal with the mines anymore. I could eat a solid meal every night—that's more than I've ever been guaranteed in my entire life. I didn't need the girl of my dreams because I had a lot of other things going for me in my life.

Why didn't I attempt to make everything go my way in life though? If I had Katniss, my life would certainly be complete. I would be able to settle down and have kids with her, and I would want to have a lot of kids. They would learn how to hunt and always love their mother the way I would love her. I would protect her from any kind of harm life threw at her. That's more than the Baker could ever do. If he really cared about her, he would have been able to save her from a lot of the war wounds she endured. Emotionally, Katniss was a wreck too. The baker should have cut her off during the Quarter Quell so she wouldn't have thrown such a hissy fit during the early war efforts.

I could only think about the time when the Baker was not present during much of my time in District 13. Katniss and I were happy. She had chosen me to be her companion, and her lifelong companion at that point. I didn't understand why she needed the Baker so badly—I could have learned how to bake too. Adding flour to crap isn't that hard anyway.

I glanced over my shoulder to see Katniss and the Baker dancing. Their kissing faces disgusted me to the point that I needed to vomit. Well, that was probably the alcohol in my system. I grabbed another bottle of wine and started drinking from it—I didn't need a glass if I knew that it was easy enough to finish it. I decided to preoccupy my mind with something other than drinking and thinking about Katniss and the Baker. I set down my bottle and grabbed a couple of glasses of champagne and walked toward two beautiful blond women.

"Can I offer you two ladies a drink? I gestured the drinks to the plastically modified women. They accepted and we talked for quite a while. Maybe I would get lucky with more than one woman tonight. I kept talking to them until two men in uniform walked up to the women.

"Can I help you gentlemen?" I asked the uniformed men.

"We are with the ladies," one of the men said.

"I did not realize that, I'm sorry for being such an ass and trying to steal these two lovely women away for the night. Next time you two better not stray so far from your dates," I said turning on my heel and walking away. Any further words and there would sure to be another war broken out in the country. I picked up my previous wine bottle and proceeded to walk outside for some fresh air.

I found a nice spot on the grass outside facing the water. The stars were covered up here unlike at District 12. I missed the stars sometimes, especially when I thought back to my time working at the mine. Sometimes I missed the simple life that District 12 offered, but I thought back to the opportunities I have since gained since working for the new government. I was guaranteed a life that will always be comfortable, and my career changed constantly throughout the times. There was no reason why I should ever be sad again.

People started processing outside—suddenly I felt crowded by all the people socializing and having a great time. I continued to drink out of my bottle and wondered why everyone suddenly filed outside. Fireworks launched into the air and illuminated the sky. I had never seen fireworks before except on television during the festivities before the Hunger Games. It was so much more breath taking in person. I could stare at the radiant colors forever as they crackled, shimmered, and shone in the night sky. People were dancing and laughing underneath the fireworks. I turned and saw Katniss and the Baker kissing under the fireworks. I rolled my eyes and returned to my bottle. All I needed was a little starter in my system to get me rolling. I arose to my feet and threw my bottle on the ground. With my newfound confidence, I walked over to two more attractive brunette women.

"I bet I can hold my liquor better than you ladies can," I said using my best, most convincing tone.

One of the ladies laughed, that was a good sign. She said, "Clearly you don't know how much I can drink then, do you?"

"I'd be willing to find out," I said raising my eyebrows. The other brunette looked unconvinced.

"You're on!" The first brunette said. Clearly, she would be a fun one to hang around this evening, as she already seemed to be very intoxicated.

"Hold on Jan, let's not get carried away," the second brunette said.

"Oh, come on, it'll be fun!" The first brunette said. "Plus, this one is rather adorable looking, don't you think?" She asked.

"I'm Mr. Adorable!" I said. I would be whatever they wanted me to be tonight.

"All right, I'm in, I guess." The second brunette said. I motioned for them to follow me to get another drink. Most of my nights off the training facility were similar to this. I turned on the Hawthorne charm wherever I went and always found happiness along the way.

I turned behind me to gather one last glimpse of the woman I truly loved. I nodded as I realized this would probably be the last time I would see her, if ever. I escorted the two ladies with me back to the place where I was staying during my festivities at The Hub. I offered them drinks and we sat out on the balcony and talked while enjoying our nightcap. I always enjoyed this area, and visited frequently due to my job. I debated about buying a flat around this area since I traveled so much. The penthouse I rented for the week seemed to be adequate enough, especially since it impressed the two ladies I brought here tonight.

"So, are you two ladies interested in…staying the evening?" I asked. If I managed to score this one, I would surely have to raise my expectations for future adventures.

"I guess so," one of them said. The other looked tentative. I reached over to the woman in doubt and cradled her face between my hands. One kiss with Gale and she'd immediately fall for me. I caressed her face and leaned in for a kiss. When we broke a part, the look on her face had immediately changed. I knew from then on she would not object to anything else.

"I'll even let you be the first one to do anything to me," I said slyly to the doubting woman. The two of them led me to the bedroom and we began our night of adventures.

The next morning I woke up in the bed all to myself. The two ladies were gone, with only a note that said, "Thanks for the evening, sorry we had to leave." At least I didn't have to worry about buying them breakfast. Last night was the most fun I had in a long time, but then the feeling of loneliness set in as I realized that my penthouse that was once filled with company was now left with just me. I moved to get out of bed and realized that I had a very large hangover.

I eventually got myself out of bed and looked in the cupboards for something to eat. I nursed my hangover with a cup of very strong coffee and settled for a piece of toast. There wasn't much available in the pantry, mostly because I was never around to even think about shopping or eating for myself.

I got dressed and wondered what I would do with my day—I checked the itinerary about what today's festivities would be. If this was suppose to be a weeklong event for the entire country, there better be some good things planned. Today was supposed to be a farmers market showcasing all of the different foods produced by the different states. If this food were supposed to be free, I would be down for going to the event. I glanced at the clock and noticed it was already 11:00 in the morning, but I didn't mind that it was already that late in the day. When I was on holiday, nothing really mattered anyway. So I waited until my headache went away and got dressed to head out to the day's festivities. The downside to being alone was that I would be forced to work extra hard to keeping myself entertained. While most people would be attending the farmers market in groups, I would have to force myself to engage in social activity with strangers and force myself to not be bored by petty conversation. I dreaded actually going to this event, especially if I saw Katniss and the Baker at the event soaking up the other's romance and love. I wondered what I could do to rectify this situation. Life would be so much easier if I just had Katniss as my very own. I realized that the only thing I could do to make my life happier would be to have Katniss in it. But how would I achieve this?

It dawned on me that the baker was held by the Capitol for several months and hijacked with tracker jacker serum. I knew where some of this was contained to be used as a test fluid in case someone needed to be distracted from his or her own life in the future. How could I get a hold of this serum so I could use it on one Katniss Everdeen to make her believe that the baker was just a fantasy?

I immediately pulled out some scratch paper and devised a plan. I wrote down all of my contacts I ever knew while working in what was formally known as District 2. I thought about anything I could use to make this plan be effective. I realized that the tracker jacker serum would be the best way to go about changing Katniss's mind. The tracker jacker serum was held in a vial in a secret vault somewhere in District 2. It was an urban legend told to all of the workers in the area as a threat to not step out of line. If I could figure out whether this truth serum was real or not, I would be able to slip it to Katniss. I hoped that there was a calmer way to dispense it compared to what the Capitol did to the baker. I would never want to hurt Katniss, however, her life could be vastly improved had she been granted access to the right person in her life.

I had to next figure out when the best time would be to use the tracker jacker serum and how I would get Katniss away from the baker long enough to be able to use the tracker jacker serum. It would have to be after the festivities were over, because that would draw too much of a scandal. It would have to be done either in Katniss's home, or somehow I would have to get her to District 2 so she could be under a closer supervision. It would look too suspicious if I were to suddenly show up at my old home. Even though my mother and brothers still live in the area, they cut off all contact with me when they found out that I was to take a different job that would pay me a lot of money. I offered to help pay my family to live in a nicer area and to always be fed, but they never wanted anything to do with me.

I pensively thought about my family and realized that more than ever I needed the right woman in my life to make me continuously happy. I would have to try spending more time with Katniss and the baker before the festivities were over, otherwise I would never get a closer insight into how they operated as a couple. I groaned at the thought of having to spend time with the baker, but it's the only way I could get to Katniss.

Today's itinerary stated that there was going to be a street fair in the afternoon. That would be the perfect time to casually run into Katniss and the baker. How would I be able to find them in a sea of thousands of people? I grabbed my phone and dialed the number of my assistant.

"This is Jon," a voice came on the phone.

"Mitchell, I have a job for you."

"Gale, how many times have I asked you to call me Jon?"

"Sorry, I just got caught up in the heat of the moment, I seriously have a job for you though."

"It's festival week though, I thought you weren't suppose to be back for another week?" He asked with a tone of annoyance in his voice.

"Your job has to do with the festival, idiot." I said forcefully.

"Hey, don't get snippy with me. I may work for you, but I'm still your best friend too. You technically can't fire me for anything I don't do during a week I have off from work. Now, I'll cash in a favor for you, but only if you treat me with respect."

"Okay, okay, you're right. I'm sorry, it's just very…urgent."

"All right, what is it then?"

"I need you to track a person down for me."

"Who is it?" Jon asked curiously.

"Well, it's actually two people, but when you find one you'll find the other." I danced around Jon's question because I suddenly felt embarrassed about tracking Katniss.

"Who is it Gale?" Jon was becoming impatient.

"Katniss Everdeen and…" I choked, "Peeta Mellark." A pause followed on the line. "Are you still there Jon?"

A very mellow tone said, "Yes." Another long pause followed. Finally, Jon said, "Do you think this is a good idea Gale?"

"Jon, I don't need you questioning my motives."

"Gale, the last time we got drunk, the only thing you could talk about was Katniss. Why do you need to track her down, are you going to apologize for anything? Why do you need Peeta Mellark too? I think whatever is going on in your head is very dangerous. Do you mind telling me why you need this information?"

I gritted my teeth. I hated when Jon weighed in and asked questions about my private work.

"You don't need to know why, Jon." I forcefully said.

"Not so fast Gale," Jon started. "I have to know whether this is going to end pretty or ugly. If this is somehow going to turn illegal, you will need one person who knows who can cover your back and make sure you don't get into trouble."

"Dammit," I thought. I hated when Jon was right, which happened quite frequently. "Fine," I started. "I'll tell you what you need to know. I ran into Katniss and Mr. Mellark the other night after the parade. I accidentally shot off my mouth, and I really need to apologize to the pair of them. I would like to do it in person as well, it would be more meaningful that way," I said. A nice lie would get Jon to quit asking questions.

"Since when do you ever apologize to people, Gale?" He asked.

"Hey now, don't be rude. I've known the pair since we were kids, this is different."

"Gale, you're my best friend, I think I know the difference. But, obviously there's something that you don't want me to know, so I'll let you get yourself into trouble with this one. Don't expect me to bail you out this time though, I'm off the record."

"Thanks Jon, I appreciate it. When can you have the information for me?"

"Well, I'll try to have it as soon as I can, I'll call you back when I'm done."

"Okay, the sooner the better Jon, this is important."

"Whatever man, I really don't get you, but you are paying me for this. By the way, since I'm off the clock, this is time and a half for you. Okay?"

I groaned into the phone. "Okay, whatever it takes." Jon hung up and I heard a click on the line. Hopefully he gathered the information quickly so I could begin to gather information about them. I would probably have to make a visit to the former District 12 too to do further research, however, I would need a good excuse to get that far. I showered and got myself ready to attend the day's festivities. The phone rang and I anxiously picked it up to see if it was Jon calling me.

"Gale Hawthorne speaking, who is this?"

"It's Jon," he said grumpily.

"Jon! Perfect, just the man I hoped it would be. Did you get the information?"

"Yes, I did. They are staying at the Rogue building off Twenty-Fourth Avenue, and are not staying by themselves. Effie Trinket is their host. The building is heavily guarded as all the honored guests from the country are staying there currently."

I wrote down this information on a scratch piece of paper and said, "Great, where is their current location?"

"They are at the street fair going on today. It appears that they are on Forty-Fifth Avenue visiting the vendors from their own state."

"Perfect. Jon, you are a genius. I'll call you back soon with more details. I'm off now to go find them." I hung up the phone and dashed out of the door. This would begin the first phase of Operation Catch Katniss. I had to keep my emotions under control so no one would have any idea about my plans. If the world knew that she was gone—it would be a threat of national security. This plan was risky, but needed to be done so I could live in peace.


	7. Katniss's Wish

Author's Note: Sorry it's been so long since I last updated! I was a camp counselor during the past week, and I have been swamped with work since I came back home. I didn't have any downtime to write either, so I took a lot of time to refresh myself on exactly where I was in the story when I got back. I know this chapter is a little short, but I just wanted to get another one updated before I got too overwhelmed with work. Soooo…here you go!

KATNISS POV:

Peeta's hand sent electric signals down my body because his touch felt so warm and inviting. I could have lain in that spot forever with his arm wrapped tightly around me. After the night's events with Gale, security was all I needed. The hunger I felt for Peeta was always satisfied with him around, however, something new emerged in my body; a new kind of hunger stirred that consumed my thoughts and actions. I glanced up at Peeta who was intensely staring at me, waiting to begin our long and serious discussion. I gathered my thoughts and took a couple of deep breaths; this conversation could end up disastrous.

"Peeta, please don't be angry with me about the conversation we are about to have, there's just something that's been…bothering me for quite a while."

Peeta's grip around me tightened and his eyes became cold and full of alarm.

"Katniss, are you leaving me?"

My heart stopped as his words rang with terror. "Peeta! What? No! Why the hell would I leave you?"

"Well, with Gale appearing and all…"

My heart began beating again and filled up with emotions of disgust. "Don't you _dare_ say that name around me, Peeta. You _know_ I don't want anything to do with _him._ Peeta, this conversation is about you and me, and that's all."

Peeta's gaze relaxed a little bit, but his grip remained tight around my waist. I could tell he didn't believe me, so I decided I would have to show him what I meant. I rolled over on top of Peeta and kissed him meaningfully. I could feel my mouth twist in a wicked smile as I began to undo the buttons of his nightshirt. I kissed his collarbone and planted kisses trailing both sides of his shoulder. Peeta closed his eyes and looked in pain. I couldn't tell whether he knew what my intentions were, I felt like a villain twirling his mustache, waiting to attack its prey. I stopped for a minute to allow Peeta to process what was happening, and then proceeded to plant kisses down his chest.

Peeta's eyes flew open in alarm. "Katniss! What the hell are you doing?!"

Rejection washed over my body and my heart sank toward my stomach. "Peeta, we both love each other, right?"

"Of course, Katniss, but I don't understand, what _are_ you trying to do?"

Did Peeta not understand why I was doing this? I was shocked that he didn't understand. I would have to make this very clear for him. I reached for my shirt and took it off, revealing a plain bra in sight.

Peeta's eyes grew large and animal-like. He took his arm off my waist and grabbed my face and began kissing me. Maybe I would get my way with this without having to convince him of anything. My inner hunger grew even more, and I knew this is what I needed to do to fulfill it. I reached for my pajama pants and yanked them off, but Peeta didn't notice. I reached for his waist band and began inching his pants off, when a hand grabbed mine in alarm.

"Katniss," He said forcefully. "We are not doing this."

My face fell as I rolled off Peeta. I realized I was in my underwear and I felt humiliated. Tears began to unceasingly flow down my face. I rolled away from Peeta and put the blankets over my face.

"Katniss," Peeta said a little less sternly. "I'm so sorry, please don't be offended."

"Offended?!" I began. "Peeta, I have spilled all my guts to you, and this is how you treat me?"

"Hey, that's not very fair," Peeta said. "You didn't exactly give me any warning, you just started ripping off your clothes, and next thing I know you're trying to rip mine off too!"

"So now this is all my fault?" I shouted through sobs.

"I'm not saying it's your fault, I'm saying that we need to talk about this."

I rolled over to face Peeta. I couldn't look him the eye, so I picked a spot on his lightly haired chest. Tears were still flowing down my face with rejection.

Peeta took a deep breath and began, "Katniss, it's not that I don't want to be…intimate…with you, I'm just not ready."

"I…I don't understand, Peeta. You've said for years that you love me, and I love you too. I want to convey to you that I—I'm yours…body and soul."

Peeta's arm was back around me and his other hand was wiping tears off my face. He tilted my chin up and gave me a light kiss on my lips and cheeks.

"Katniss, my love, I understand your feelings. However, this commitment is very hard to make for just anyone. You don't need to prove to me that you love me, I know."

"You doubted me all day today though about my loyalty to you. I just thought that this would really prove to you that I _am_ yours."

"Katniss, this was not the best way to prove that to me. You had nothing to prove though; I know that you love me and that I love you too. I was feeling week today, especially after…_him._ My nightmares about you make me unable to distinguish from reality, and today I struggled grasping the fact that our love is reality. I'm really sorry my insecurity scared you, however, I need help sometimes being certain that I am in reality."

I considered Peeta's words and began to understand his problem. "Peeta, I understand what you're going through. However, we are in reality and we do love each other. Why _can't_ we take the next step?"

"Katniss, we can't take the next step because what you think the next step is really is not what we should do."

"Why not? We are practically adults, do you think we're going to get caught by someone?"

"It's not that, Katniss. It's just—" Peeta paused. "This just wasn't how I was raised." Peeta looked down at himself and was embarrassed.

"What do you mean it wasn't how you were raised?" I was truly puzzled.

"I mean, I was raised to marry a girl before we ever got intimate."

"You mean… you're old fashioned?" I giggled.

"If you call it that, then sure. Most people in District 12—I mean the former District 12 were supposedly raised that way too. My parents raised me this way and I always believed in their reasoning for doing so. I never cared what anyone else did or who with, I just always stuck to my values instead of succumbing to peer pressure."

"That's really good of you to do that, Peeta. I respect that decision very much. Although, we are _married."_

Peeta's eyebrows rose. "What do you mean?"

"You said during the Quarter Quell interview that we were married."

"Katniss, you know that wasn't true. It would have been one thing if we had actually done it, but another for me to just make it up like that."

I sighed and said, "I suppose, though it would be a nice loophole. I've got this hunger inside that won't go away. The thought of having you on a different level just makes my heart sing more than ever before."

"Katniss, I've felt that way since the day I met you. There were times when we first started spending the night with each other that I wanted it so desperately. However, I was unsure of your feelings about me, and I knew that it wouldn't have been fair to take advantage of you. Now, with all of my emotional problems from the Capitol, I have to try harder to distinguish between two worlds. If I were to suddenly jump into this level of commitment, I would have a hard time believing which world I was in at the time. The Capitol tried to use that kind of warfare on me, believing I was married and intimate with you. It made living in this world…unbearable. It just is going to take more time to be able to let go of these things from the Capitol. Also, I want to marry you first, that is a given."

Peeta paused and allowed me to digest his words. My tears changed from tears of my own sorrow, to sympathetic tears. For the first time, my heart broke thinking about what the Capitol did to Peeta and how abhorrent reality would have been after dealing with torture warfare. I nuzzled into Peeta's bare chest and cried on him. I cried for an hour, letting out all of my emotions from the previous year out on Peeta's chest. Peeta just stroked my back the entire time; he was unsure of whether my tears were of anger or sadness. When my tears ceased, I picked my head up and looked at Peeta. My eyes were swollen and puffy and hurt to keep them open.

"Katniss, I'm so incredibly sorry. Will you ever forgive me?" Peeta asked. Guilt washed over me as I realized that Peeta thought I was still angry at him.

"Peeta, don't be sorry. I was crying out of sadness for what you had to go through at the Capitol. I only just realized how horrible and cruel their torture was to you. My tears were angry because of the Capitol, not you. Don't you see that there is nothing that you can do to change my love for you, Peeta?" I clutched him closer to my side and rubbed my cheek against his arm.

"Oh Katniss, I love you so much, I always have. I only wish I could fulfill everything you want right now. I promise you, one day, we will get there. I'm just not ready for it yet." Peeta lifted my chin and kissed me softly. He caressed my cheeks and planted a final kiss on my forehead.

"Thank you, Peeta, for sharing this with me. I know it caused you a great deal of pain. It was something I needed to know, and now that I do I won't bother you with it again. I only want to help you and constantly remind you that there is no more competition with anyone else. I am yours, and I'm not going anywhere."

The next event that happened shocked me. "Katniss, I'm going to make a little bit of your dream come true." Peeta let go of me and hoisted himself on top of me. He started caressing me all over my body. My hunger grew even stronger and with every touch, sparks shot through my body. After a few minutes, Peeta rolled back over to his side and kissed me once again.

"Thank you, Peeta. I know that must have been hard for you. I did enjoy that though, your touch sends sparks through my skin." I blushed after saying that, a part of me felt very raunchy for allowing that to take place.

"You're welcome, I guess," Peeta said awkwardly. "I'm pretty sleepy though, is it all right if I just put my arms around you and cradle you to sleep now?"

A smile broke on my face. "Of course Peeta, but only if you say you love me first."

"Katniss Everdeen, I love you more than air itself."

"I love you too, Peeta." I stretched up and kissed his lips softly and rolled into his chest and fell soundly asleep.


	8. Mixed Emotions

Author's Note: Hello all! Thanks for reading! My heart goes out to all of you who read this story, especially those who review as well! I've gotten some good constructive criticism, and I really appreciate it. I've had a couple of exhaustingly busy weeks, so I've been trying to catch up on everything and write chapters for this, and ahh! I'm also in the process of moving into a new place and stuff, so I'm taking time to do that too. Anyway, here's the next chapter! Enjoy! Don't forget to review.

Katniss POV:

Peeta and I awoke the next morning to an enraged Effie at my door.

"What are you two thinking?" Effie shouted at the top of her lungs. My eyes stirred open, still puffy from crying. Memories of the conversation Peeta and I had the previous night flooded my head and reality started to haze around me. My head suddenly pounded with aches and emotions. I opened my eyes fully, squinting at the light and at the sudden pain that flooded around me.

"Effie? What time is it?" I sheepishly asked.

"Time for you and Peeta to QUIT DOING THIS." Effie shrieked. Peeta jolted awake and sat up straight in bed. I looked at him and realized he wasn't wearing his shirt.

"Oh shit!" I thought as I realized I was only wearing my underwear. I sunk lower into my pillow, trying not to give away my current nakedness.

"Effie," Peeta said smoothly, "Nothing is wrong, we didn't do anything."

"It sure doesn't look that way!" Effie's face was purple with rage.

"Effie," Peeta calmly expressed once again, "Katniss and I had a long talk last night about our boundaries with each other—we aren't going to do that just yet."

"I don't want it happening at all underneath my roof!" Effie howled.

"Effie, Katniss and I decided to wait until we are married…" Peeta trailed off glumly.

"How do I _know_ that though? You guys used to tell convincing lies for the Capitol all the time, things may not be different now."

"Effie," Peeta began again. "Katniss and I were severely damaged during the war, not necessarily physically, but emotionally we are different people. Our conversation that we had last night was about the amount we could tolerate as people who have survived not only the Hunger Games and Quarter Quell, but combat in the war as well. We have a lot of emotional damage that we can only fix when we talk it out with each other. The nightmares that I have, Effie, are about losing Katniss. I need Katniss with me for reassurance, especially at night. That's why I sneak in here every night. I have to hold her in my arms to know that she is all right, so I can be all right too. We decided that it would be hard for the both of us to go through anything else physical when we can't handle it emotionally. I love this woman so much, Effie, I would never do anything to jeopardize her health. Right now, the two of us just need each other…" Peeta's reverie trailed off and he looked up at Effie for confirmation in his logic.

"And what do you have to say young lady?" Effie said as her anger simmered slightly.

"Effie, I was the one that started the conversation last night. I wanted to not wait any longer, however, it was Peeta who stopped me and helped me realize that I am not ready for anything more emotionally yet. I would never want to push our relationship before we were ready to handle a larger commitment. Peeta and I haven't had the time to be a proper couple yet, and we want to take things slow before we rush into the big things." My bravado ended and I was satisfied with my much shorter speech than Peeta's. My eyes drifted up to Effie's and I gave her a convincing look. She softened slightly and began to see reason.

"I still don't like the idea of you two sleeping in the same bed," Effie stated.

"Why not?" I asked.

"If anyone were to find out, there could be scandals across the nation. Paparazzi are around everywhere, and believe it or not, but there are people who do not want this country to exist in its new state. People will be around trying to tear you two apart for years to come."

My heart sank as I realized the impact of these words. Peeta and I would have to be careful for the next several years—if not the rest of our lives in conducting ourselves. If the paparazzi published reports that slandered Peeta and me, it would be the start of another war.

"If the paparazzi wanted to publish a story about Katniss and me, wouldn't they have already done it?" Peeta asked.

"Well, there are several people throughout the Hub that screen for these kinds of things, the articles have been written about the pair of you in the past and censored. The press only releases articles based on truth, regardless of whether it is good or bad. If the paparazzi ever found something that could be printed in a version of the truth (regardless of whether it was twisted slightly or not) then it would be disastrous for the entire country."

Peeta nodded his head in agreement and his face fell in despair. "I understand your logic, Effie. As much as I wish I didn't have to comply, I will."

My heart sank into my stomach and I felt utter sadness creep into my veins. I would have to spend the remainder of my nights here without Peeta to comfort me. I agonized at the thought of Peeta's nightmares and hoped that the rest of this week would pass by quickly.

After the emotional events of the morning, Peeta, Effie, and I decided to wander around the day's street fair. There were several booths displaying patriotic flags, attire, and gift items that people bought and wore around the Hub. Peeta bought me a flag I could wave around during the day, and I bought him a pin for the lapel of his jacket. We pointed out the children that were playing with one another—regardless of what state they were from, or how much money their parents made. It filled my heart with joy to see peace with youth. Several people approached us and either congratulated us, or expressed their feelings of discontent with the way the new country was set up diplomatically. We shrugged off those who were unhappy, and embraced those who said they would support us. Throughout the entire day, we were never alone, and constantly being crowded in the streets of the Hub.

Finally, Peeta took me down an ally and wrapped his arm tightly around my side.

"Where are we, Peeta?" I asked gazing around me.

"Nowhere in particular, I just wanted some alone time away from all those people. I haven't been able to put my arm around you all day either. Believe it or not, Katniss, even though you've been with me all day, I've missed you.

My heart warmed and I stood on my toes and gave Peeta a swift kiss. "I missed you too," I said. "I'm glad for our little detour as well."

Peeta's smile spread widely across his face. It was a wicked and coy smile, one that would make any woman blush. In a moment, he shoved me against a brick building and his hot lips were on mine, urgent as ever. We passionately kissed, our tongues exploring each other—as if we both needed it for catharsis. When we broke a part, both of us panted wildly. Music came from the end of the alley which faced a busy street. We both examined the accordion player and started to giggle.

"Fancy a dance, Katniss?" Peeta formally asked, offering his hand to me.

"I don't mind if I do, kind sir." I shyly responded. I took his hand and he led me to a casual dance. It felt nice being this close to Peeta, I missed this alone time with him. He spun me around and twirled me under his arm. I giggled and attempted to twirl him as well.  
"I missed that laugh…" Peeta began.

"I missed laughing in general," I began. "The last time I genuinely laughed was when I was with Ga-"I stopped. I couldn't udder the name without my heart falling and tears forming in my eyes. I continued, "It's just been a very long time since I've really enjoyed myself like this. I love being here with you."

"I love being here with you too. I should have taken you aside like this earlier in the day, it's quite lovely in this alley actually." Peeta chuckled and led me in one last spin until the music stopped. I wrapped my arms around his waist and stood with my head buried in his chest. I would be ecstatic never moving from that spot ever. I took a deep breath and reveled in his scent.

"We should go, I'm sure we're being watched, if you know what I mean." Peeta said.

"You're probably right. I felt like I've been watched all day. I know Effie left us at one point because she said she felt comfortable with how we conducted ourselves, however, I can't help but feeling like someone else has been watching us intently." I responded uncertainly.

"That's interesting that you say that, Katniss…" Peeta started. He looked around uncomfortably. "I've had a feeling similar to that as well. It's almost like I felt that someone followed us all day."

"That is strange," I agreed. "Let's hope that we're overreacting that nothing is wrong." Peeta placed his arm around my waist and I looked over my shoulder to the end of the alley. The accordion player was still playing tunes, ones that I didn't recognize. I wondered if they were from this man's childhood, and what district he came from to learn such artful songs. Some of them were filled with joy, and many full of lament. I shook off my melancholy and followed Peeta out of the alley.

Peeta led me down to another street where booths from the state of Ashland were contained. I smiled as I see many representatives from our state filled with so much promise. I did not recognize anyone from home, however. I realized that these must all be immigrants to the state, as it was being rebuilt into a state for medical testing and treatments. Many of the booths held pictures of the construction sites and what the state will look like after reconstruction is completed. I marveled at the city center and where the Justice building used to be. A new, stronger building eventually will take its place as the building of diplomacy—a Courthouse. It was a foreign concept to me thinking about being able to discuss the future of the state with other people, instead of being run by people without our best interests at heart.

I noticed Peeta talking to a representative at another booth and walked over to see what he was discussing. The attendant was a young man, tall and lanky in appearance. I guessed he was just a teenager with a summer job at the Hub, he was either from the Hub or from a former district that was very well off judging by his clean appearance. I listened in to Peeta's tone; it sounded like he was trying to argue with the attendant.

"…Well, what about the other buildings in the town? Will they resemble how the district used to look? There were a lot of buildings that members from District 12 loved, such as the Hob and bakery that my parents owned…" Peeta said.

I rolled my eyes and realized he was attempting to argue with this person. I cathartically placed my arms around Peeta, hoping he would relax and leave the poor booth attendant alone. He kept persisting, and I realized that these were issues Peeta cared about strongly.

"Well, I myself was born in District 3, I had never really heard of District 12 until it was destroyed. The representatives of your state will decide what buildings will look like and where they will be placed. As far as I am aware, the plan is to keep some of the original buildings left standing in their places and build some modern ones around them. I myself would love to see some of the old buildings remodeled, even the ones that were bombed. It would be a great idea as a memorial to bring back some of the old businesses and keep that part of District 12 alive. However, it is no longer a district, the area is now a state: a state called Ashland. This area is considered a blank canvas—so-to-speak, because there is not much of anything at the current moment."

Peeta shook his head solemnly. This was a hard thing for him to hear. He needed to realize, however, that Ashland would never look the same as District 12.

"What about the meadows by the boundaries, will those be destroyed at well?" Peeta said angrily.

"Those will be turned into wildlife reserves. The new country has decided that the mission is to preserve life, not destroy it. This doesn't apply to just humans. People may view the reserve, but the goal is for it to not be a tourist spot. The university may use the meadows and lakes for areas of study as well." The attendant said.

My heart sank as I realized I might not be able to hunt in this area any more. I thought of other places I could go to hunt; however, none were as close and convenient as the meadow and lake. I shrugged off my disappointment and listened back to the conversation again.

"If I wanted to get in contact with my representatives, how would I do that?" Peeta asked.

"It's easy, you're talking to one of them right now." The booth attendant said. He continued and said, "My name is Florian, and I will be in Ashland starting next week assisting with transitions between the area being known as District 12 and Ashland."

Peeta looked shocked and said, "You mean, you will be one of the representatives for the state?"

Florian laughed and said, "Yes sir that is correct. I am one of many that will be representing Ashland on a day-to-day basis as well as here in the Hub during certain times of the year."

"You're so young though!" I said, confused that such a young person could be given so much power.

"You—You're Katniss Everdeen, aren't you?" Florian said.

I blushed and said, "Yes, I am, it's nice to meet you Florian."

"The honor is all mine, Katniss. I'm not surprised that you both are skeptical of me…" Peeta scowled and looked at Florian to measure whether he was being friendly, or making a pass at me. Florian continued, "…However, I assure you I have all the right training to be an ambassador and representative to Ashland. I am also not the only one to be on this board for the state. There will be many others as well who will consult the public and make decisions based on what the people need. In fact, we are still looking for people to be on our board. Do you think you might be interested in serving, Katniss?"

"Me?" I squeaked. Peeta's eyes grew in alarm.

"Yes, I think you have all the right qualities. You could serve more on the end of helping people through the state, instead of on the end of the Hub. You would have to travel here every once in a while, but probably not as often as I will every year. How about I give you my business card, and you give me a call if you are interested?"

My eyes were glued to the business card that appeared in his hands. I had no idea whether I should have taken it, or let him keep it for the next unsuspecting person to have. My hand skeptically reached for it and gently took it from his hands. Florian reached and shook my hand, and Peeta's as well.

"If you excuse me," Florian started. "I have to go make a couple calls. Please, Katniss, do think about it. Afterall, what else do you have to do in Ashland anyway?" Florian walked away leaving me just as shocked. My hand was still outstretched and his business card was still at the tips of my fingers. I read the card:

**Florian Castinova**

**Ashland Ambassador, Board President**

**PhD Candidate in Domestic Affairs at Leo Tate Institute**

I showed Peeta the business card and he took it from my hand to inspect it. There was a watermark with the crest of the Hub on it. On the backside of the card, a giant stamp of the country's new crest invaded the entire space. Peeta looked surprised and handed the card back to me and sighed heavily.

"Peeta, what's wrong?" I asked. "You don't think I'm going to actually take this job, do you?"

"Of course I do, Katniss. It's the perfect job for you. You heard him, you get to help people around the entire state. This is a dream come true for you, it would be silly if you didn't take it." Peeta's tone was laced with envy.

"I won't take it if you don't want me to take it," I said. "It sounds like this is upsetting you, and I don't have to do it. Besides, I don't know what this job entails, let alone if I am the right person to do it. I have no education past our basic education, and I know almost nothing about the world. I just happened to be at the right place at the right time (even then, that's a matter of opinion) and became the poster child for the stupid war!" My voice became harsher as I said, "The only reason that guy was interested in me was because he bought the propaganda against the Capitol just like anyone else did. This Florian guy didn't understand the amount of teeth District 13 had to pull to even get me to agree to their video promos. I am interested in this, I would like to have an input in what does and does not happen to Ashland. It's my home—no, it's _our_ home. Though, I don't want this job to interfere with the life I do have back at home, which is you. Peeta, if you don't want me to do this, I don't have to do it. I just want to be with you no matter what and know that when I come home at night from whatever job I do from now on, that you'll pick me up in your arms, kiss me tenderly, and we'll share the day's stories with each other. I love you too much to ever let you go, especially if it's to a job that frustrates you."

Peeta smiled slightly and said, "I love you too, Katniss. I'm not angry at you, I'm angry that Florian might be trying to impress you with his job…I'm afraid that you might leave when you find someone better than me…" Peeta looked at the ground, ashamed that he said his thoughts out loud.

"Is that what you really think, Peeta?" I asked, shocked of his revelation.

"Well, actually yes, Katniss." Peeta said still examining the ground.

"Peeta Mellark, you're quite thick sometimes!" I yelled, unaware that a crowd may be examining us in closer detail.

"Katniss, don't cause a scene."

"I will cause a scene, Peeta, if you think that I would just leave you for someone else! Peeta, I love you more than my own life, don't you see that? The only thing I _want_ to do is be with you. Why can't you see that?"

"It just takes time, Katniss. This is all so new to me, especially after being tortured by the Capitol for so long." Tears started to form in my eyes, my young, spirited boy was coming apart in front of my eyes.

"Peeta, I'll do anything to show you that I care. I love you and I want you to know that you are the reason why I'm still around. I'll never leave you, and if time has to demonstrate that to you, then I'm eager to spend all the time I can around you." I smiled and hugged Peeta tightly. I never wanted to let him go.

"I believe you Katniss, I really do. I love you so much." He kissed me sweetly and swiftly. "Please consider the job, I think it would be good for you to get out of the house every once in a while too."

"I will, Peeta. What will you do to keep yourself busy if I take a job?" I curiously asked.

"I was thinking actually about starting up the baking business again, as a tribute to my parents."

I beamed at him, "That would be a fantastic idea, Peeta! I believe in you, and you should do it. Everyone in Ashland will still need cakes and bread, and you're so good at making delicious food for everyone. I will support you whole-heartedly with whatever you want to do."

Peeta squeezed my hand and smiled. "We will talk about it when we get home. For now, I'd like to enjoy the rest of this street fair." Peeta started to tote me around to the next booth when suddenly he stopped in his tracks.

"Hey Catnip, Baker." Gale said.

Out of all the people in the Hub, the one person we found had to be the one I never wanted to see again in my life.

"Gale." I coolly said.

"Hi, Gale." Peeta shyly said.

"Fancy meeting you two here at the street fair. It seems like there are a lot of people out today as well, it appears the world is small at the current moment."

Peeta and I nodded our heads slightly to acknowledge his statement.

Gale continued, "It figures I would find you two here in the Ashland section, find anything interesting?" Gale's tone was slightly condescending, but was attempting to make an effort to be polite.

"I got offered a job," I said humbly.

"A job? What is the position?"

"A representative for the state," Peeta chimed in proudly.

"You don't say?" Gale responded.

"Yeah, although I'm not sure yet if I will take it, there's kind of a lot in the air for me right now at home anyway." I said.

"Pity, it would be really hot to see you at the Hub every once in a while, especially all dressed up as a dignified official." Gale said and added a wink at the end of his thought.

"Gale, will you quit flirting with Katniss? She's not interested in you." Peeta said confidently. I smiled at Peeta, indicating that he said the right thing.

"Relax, Baker! I was just teasing. Besides, I'm glad I found you both. I'm here to—er—apologize."

My mouth dropped open hearing these words come out of Gale's mouth. Anger flared up within me, making my blood boil. I thought of Prim's smile and playful personality. Tears started to form in my eyes and I looked down at the ground, fixating on a small stone.

"Katniss, look at me," Gale said softly. His voice sounded familiar to the Gale that I knew as a child. I sniffed and hesitantly met his gaze.

"I'm sorry for criticizing you the other day. It was rude of me to do that, especially after knowing everything that you went through last year. I am very sorry about the loss of your sister and I hope that you can forgive me someday."

My face dropped as I processed Gale's words. I looked at Peeta who gave me a slight shrug in question. My adrenaline pulsed through my veins as I considered Gale's apology. Was it sincere? Why would he suddenly apologize after repeatedly hurting me over the past couple of years. I looked at Peeta again, who this time looked hurt more than anything. I wondered if he thought I would leave him for Gale.

"I forgive you, Gale." I finally muttered. Peeta's eyebrows furrowed together and sadness deepened in his eyes.

"Thank you, Katniss. I know it will take a long time to earn back your trust, however, I will do anything to make it up to you if I can."

Thanks, Gale, I appreciate it." I checked my watch to see what the time was. I wanted any excuse I could to get some space and think about this sudden turn of events. "It's half past three already! Peeta, we need to go, we told Effie we would be back by now, I'm sure if we are gone any longer she'll send out the police squad to come look for us."

"You're absolutely right Katniss, I feel so irresponsible, I'm sorry I didn't keep a better track of time," Peeta responded, catching that I desperately wanted to leave.

"Are you guys walking back? I could give you a lift if you urgently need to get back to wherever you are staying!" Gale urgently offered.

"Well, we're only a couple blocks away, we can just walk back." Peeta said.

"In that case, I'll walk you guys back, I'm sure you're not far from my apartment."

Panic spread throughout my body, I did not want Gale following Peeta and I back to the apartment. I knew there was no way of getting rid of Gale, so I took Peeta's hand forcefully and started dragging him in the direction of Effie's apartment. Gale followed us like a lost puppy, eager to talk with me whenever he could. I kept asking Peeta questions, hoping that he would take the conversation over. Gale never talked to Peeta, only me. Eventually we reached the apartment building and I turned to face Gale.

"Thanks for walking us back home, I'm sure we'll see you sometime soon. I held my hand out to shake his, and Gale reached out and gave me a bear hug.

"I've missed you Catnip. I'll be out in Ashland soon, and we'll go hunting." I looked uncertainly toward Peeta, who still looked hurt. I turned on my heel and went inside the building and queued for the elevator. Once we were sure Gale was gone, Peeta wrapped me in his arms, and I started to cry.

"It's okay Katniss, you can cry. I can't imagine how you must be feeling right now. Don't be afraid to cry, we can stand here as long as it takes." Peeta stroked my back sympathetically and allowed me to cry into his chest.

"I…I'm just so confused Peeta. Gale was my best friend, and he was callous ever since I found out you were alive. I just wanted the friend I once had. Why did he change so drastically into a villain?" I started to sob when I thought about Gale being cruel to my family when I was younger. Peeta clutched me closer to his chest and consoled me.

"I don't know if I could ever really forgive him, Peeta. He had a hand in my sister's death, he could have stopped his cruel acts. Why did this all happen Peeta?"

Peeta waited a minute to speak. "Katniss, this is all my fault," he finally said.

I pushed myself away from his chest and said, "How could you even think that?! Peeta, Gale's cruelness to me is not your fault. Please, don't blame yourself."

Peeta shook his head and bowed it slightly. "Katniss, it is my fault, don't you understand? Ever since I announced to the world that I was in love you, and have been since the day I laid my eyes on you, I was on Gale's target list. Katniss, he had to watch us during the Hunger Games be affectionate. Even though it was all an act in the beginning, he bought into it. When I first saw Gale after the 74th Games, he threatened me to stay away from you, claiming that I would never be good enough for you. I told him that he had no choice, because the entire country relied on our act. Ever since that moment, he tried to win you back. If it hadn't been for going back to the Quarter Quell, I believe he would have succeeded…" Peeta was stifling back tears and his voice started to crack.

"No, Peeta, he wouldn't have succeeded. I was confused for a long time, but I realized that after going through the Hunger Games that I couldn't handle someone with such a hot temper and abrasive personality. When we were kids it was okay because we just competed against each other for food and glory. After being faced with such a harsh reality, I knew that someone who was more collected and mature would be best for me, especially after the trauma I've been through the past few years. Peeta, if a choice ever came between you and Gale, I would always choose you. Tears lined Peeta's eyes as if a burden was lifted off his shoulders. He hugged me again and we sat on the floor of the elevator. We held each other for several minutes, both motionless and speechless.

Peeta finally broke the silence when he said; "I'm the luckiest man on earth to have a beautiful woman such as you in my life." My heart soared after plummeting deep in my core throughout the afternoon. I dabbed my eyes of the tears of sorrow, and tears of joy replaced them.

"Why are you crying, Katniss?"

"Because, I'm so happy to have you in my life. These are tears of joy. Peeta, I'm so happy that I can hold you here in my arms and know that you'll be by my side no matter what life throws at us. So far, we've gone through some rough times, but you've more than proved how strong and faithful you are to me. Words can't describe how much I love you, Peeta."

Peeta tightened his hold, and then stuck his hand in his pocket and searched for something. His face seemed puzzled, and then once he found what he was looking for, his face beamed.

"What is it, Peeta?"

"Katniss Everdeen…" Peeta started as he shifted himself so he was on his knees facing me. I was seated with my legs crossed on the floor of the elevator. "I never want to leave your side, in sickness and in health, until death do us part. I want to take care of you for the rest of your life, and make you the happiest woman in the entire country of Paloma…Will you—will you marry me?" Peeta revealed a box and opened it to reveal a ring with an elegant diamond in the middle. The band was simple and sweet, and on the inside it was engraved, "You are the victor of my heart."

I marveled over Peeta's words and the ring he chose for me. Tears began to well in my eyes again and I shouted, "YES!" at the top of my lungs. Peeta lurched toward me and hugged me.

"Oh Katniss, you have just made me the happiest man on Earth!" Peeta exclaimed. He kissed me passionately and made my hunger return stronger than ever. When we finally broke apart, he cleared his throat and motioned to the ceremonial placing of the ring on my left ring finger.

"Peeta, how long have you had this ring?" I questioned.

"Since we both became victors of the 74th Hunger Games. I bought it hoping that you would fall in love with me one day…I never thought I'd actually get to use it!" He said jokingly.

"You've had it that long?!" I asked.

"Of course Katniss. There was never a doubt who was the perfect woman for me. If I could have bought one when I was in elementary school, I would have done so. I've known you were the one since the day I laid my eyes on you." Peeta kissed my finger with the ring on it and continued, "I've carried this ring around with me waiting for the correct opportunity to propose to you. During the Quarter Quell I stashed the ring at the house. When we came back to District 12—I mean Ashland, it was the first thing I looked for, and it gave me horrible nightmares. When I came around to believing it was real, I knew that this ring had stayed around for a reason, and that was so you could become my wife."

"Peeta, you say the sweetest things. How did I get so lucky?"

"Honey, you don't know the half of it." Peeta said in adoration. He helped me to my feet and hit the open button on the elevator.

"Let's get ready for our event tonight, Katniss. We have a lot of celebrating to do at our dinner, and it won't just be to celebrate the country's independence."

I beamed and allowed him to lead me inside the apartment. We both rushed to Effie to share the great news.


	9. Hunt for Truth?

Author's Note: So I'm updating twice this week because I forgot to update last week due to life being chaotic. So, lucky you guys! I decided to put another Gale chapter in because I thought I needed it to cover more details, etc. Also, I did a little math recently (I'm a science major, it's what I do) and found out that according to the laws of the Internet, this story has so far produced over 140 pages according to "novel length" regulation. When I heard that I was definitely shocked! So hopefully that will continue. My goal is to actually make a novel length story. All of the Hunger Games books are like 400 pages anyway, right? We'll see how far I get. ;) Anyway, I hope you guys are enjoying the story! Don't forget to review!

GALE POV:

Katniss grows with beauty every passing day. I couldn't believe how radiant her skin looked underneath the Hub sun at the street fair. Her hair glowed with sun kissed highlights, and her eyes sparkled and shone brighter than anyone else's I've seen. After walking Katniss and the Baker back to Effie Trinket's apartment, I could only think about embracing Katniss every day for the rest of our lives. Her warm touch and silky skin sent shivers down my spine. I sat outside the apartment building for hours dreaming about waking up next to Katniss every morning.

This same dream invaded my thoughts for the next week as I constantly tracked Katniss. I was thankful that military technology evolved enough to make trackers microscopic. Just brushing Katniss's neck when embracing her embedded the tracker in her skin. I'd watch her from afar, trying to reacquaint myself with the girl I once played with every day as a child. I had to research my subject before making any more moves. If I were to suddenly invade her life daily, suspicion would swamp the papers and potentially start another war. I curiously watched how Katniss and the Baker interacted with each other. It was almost as though I watched two wounded animals trying to take care of each other, each struggling to take care of themselves. Katniss didn't need a wounded animal, she needed a strong animal to protect her. I would be her strong animal that she so desperately needed.

After the festivities at the Hub were over, I proceeded back to my new home in the state of Beetee—which was named after Beetee in honor of his military involvement during the war of Panem. Formally known as District 2, the state of Beetee contained facilities that specialized for training and innovation of new military technologies. I loved living in this state because of the level of dedication to keeping the newly developed country safe.

I opened the door to my cluttered apartment and found several missed messages on my phone. Most of them were from my assistant and best friend, Jon Mitchell. When I first came to the state of Beetee, I was assigned to a set of basic training before taking my position as a Sargent in the weaponry development unit. Jon was also trained at the same time, and eventually became my assistant based on the amount of crap he would take from me.

Beetee assigned me to a development station based on our prior experience together in the war. I was thankful I knew him, as he taught me the basics about the different forms of warfare, and how to extract the best out of each kind to develop the best weapon available. He passed along all his development plans once he thought I had obtained enough knowledge to take over his job. For some reason, the war was enough to force him into retirement. A few short weeks later, Beetee had a mysterious death that left the entire state wrecked and without a strong leader. The state turned their eyes toward me for instruction, even though I wasn't the highest ranked officer. I became known as the Protégé because of my acquaintance with Beetee. I gained full access to all of the facilities around the state and was granted access to everything without question. I explored many of the different facilities in hopes that something will inspire me to develop a weapon that would terrify the entire nation into living in peace with each other.

I shook my head out of my reverie and knew that the tracker jacker serum would be my only way to truly make Katniss realize that the Baker was not the right person for her. At the same time, a new thought dawned on me. The tracker jacker serum could also be used for the weapon that would ultimately cause peace in Paloma.

I grabbed the phone and dialed Mitchell's number.

"This is Jon Mitchell speaking, how may I help you?"

"Mitchell, it's Gale."

"Gale?! Where the hell have you been? You were supposed to be at work this morning at 700 hours. Where are you?"

"I'm at home, I just got back about five minutes ago. That should have been cleared with the head honcho earlier."

"If you say so, the office has been swamped this morning though. I think you should come in as soon as you can."

"I'll be in shortly, I just need to settle back into my apartment. I have something important for you to do first. I need you to get me the passcode for Vault 75." I braced myself to hear what Jon Mitchell's reaction would be.

There was a brief silence on the phone followed by a groan. "Gale, you know that it's impossible to get into Vault 75. There's still a question of whether it even exists…" Jon Mitchell trailed off and sighed into the phone.

"Look, Mitchell…Jon…I just need this to happen, okay? I've got a lot of important people I need to please soon and I just know that the contents inside the vault will certainly impress the right people.

Jon Mitchell sighed again. "Could you have waited another day or two? I mean, the office is literally swamped with security issues from the last week's festivities. There's a lot of maintenance issues, and I'm pretty sure you've already missed two meetings today."

"Look, this is an _urgent _matter. I'll need it as soon as I can because I have a plan in the works already. Everything else can hold for a little while."

"If you say so…" Jon Mitchell replied. "I'll see what I can do, but no guarantees."

"That's the Jon Mitchell I know and hired. Thanks man, I'll be into the office in about twenty minutes." I responded and hung up the phone. I dumped my bags in the apartment and got ready for work. About half an hour later, I strolled into the office to see many people fervently working in their cubicles. Phones were ringing off the hook and many were holding their heads in their hands in frustration. I strolled into my office and called for Jon Mitchell to report the latest information to me.

"About time, Gale!" Jon Mitchell said.

"Beauty takes time, Mitchell." I responded dryly.

"Mr. Markaz wants to see you in about fifteen minutes." Jon Mithcell stated. I ignored him and rifled through papers on my desk. At the current moment I cared less about what my boss wanted from me.

"Do you have the information for Vault 75?" I asked.

"Well—er—Sir, you have your meetings though!"

"You didn't answer my question, Mitchell. Do you have the information or not?"

Jon Mitchell signed heavily and responded, "Yes, yes I do…"

"Good. If you'll give me the papers with the correct codes, I'll go to my meeting and talk to Mr. Markaz about my latest breakthrough. That ought to silence things at least temporarily."

Jon Mitchell handed a manila envelope containing a packet full of codes and maps of the underground facilities that were built back when District 2 trained Peacekeepers. I smiled slightly and strolled out my door to Mr. Markaz's office. I turned one last time and nodded my head to Jon Mitchell to show my thanks and dismiss him back to his activities. I knocked on Mr. Markaz's door.

"Where the _hell_ have you been, Sergeant Hawthorne?" Mr. Markaz said upon greeting me.

"Sir, I apologize for my tardiness, however I had business to attend to this morning at the Hub. I only arrived back at home less than an hour ago."

"What sort of business did you have that was more urgent than showing up to work on time today?" Mr. Markaz's face grew purple.

I held up the manila envelope and shook it to show that it was full of papers. "This, sir, is why. You see, I have an idea for a new developmental weapon that may be just what we are looking for in terms of the ultimate shock-factor weapon. However, it's in very primitive stages of research right now." I threw the envelope on the desk in Mr. Markaz's office so he could search through the packet of information.

"Well, Hawthorne… I must say, I'm pleasantly surprised. To think, I was going to make you clean up all the messes from the last week, however, I think you could be on to something. I'll tell you what, you can take today and start doing more research, and report back to me by the end of the day about what you found. Take your assistant if you need."

"Why, thank you Mr. Markaz. I'm glad that you are on board with this idea, I'm going to obtain samples today and by tomorrow I hope to have sketches and patterns drawn up of the weapon. Have a good day, Mr. Markaz, and again, I apologize for my tardiness." I nodded my head and walked out of his office. I knew that would be easy to convince him that my project needed top priority in the company. I walked back to my office and sat down in my chair. I put my feet up on the desk and drank a sip of my coffee.

Jon Mitchell walked in and said, "Sir? How did your meeting go with Mr. Markaz?" He had a smirk playing on his face, sure that I was going to be swamped with work for the rest of the day.

"My meeting went fantastically well, Mitchell." I said with a smirk.

"Did it, now?" His eyebrows went up as if suddenly curious.

"Why yes, I showed him my envelope of "important" papers here. You see, he didn't even have to look at them, he believed that they were important enough just by how I was describing them!"

"How? Why—ugh, you frustrate me sometimes, Gale."

"I know I do. Now, let's take lunch in half an hour, and then we'll go down and do some research with the tracker jacker serum."

After a relaxing afternoon break, I drove to a warehouse on the other side of the state and put in codes into the highly secure area. I parked my car and found a small abandoned looking building. I shrugged and nodded toward Jon Mitchell to look for a door. When we arrived to the building, we noticed a keypad to enter another code. We proceeded into the building to find an empty room.

"Now what do we do?" Jon Mitchell asked in frustration.

"Do we have the right building?" I asked.

"Yes, I'm sure we do. I know we have to get underground somehow, but I don't know how."

"Well, let's just look around to see if there is somehow a button to open up a passage underground," I suggested.

Jon Mitchell and I split up and looked around the building to find some indication for a hidden passageway. Finally, I found a book laying on the ground near the corner of the room. I opened it to find a small button in the left hand corner of the cover page. I pressed it and a hole opened up in the center of the room. Jon Mitchell walked over to it and shined a flashlight into it.

"It looks like you just have to…jump?"

"You first!" I said and pushed him down the hole.

"Ouch!" I heard him say. The jump wasn't that far down, but still a bit of a drop. I jumped down into the hole and looked around. Jon Mitchell showed his flashlight around the room, we were suspended several feet above the ground. Pathways ran from every direction, making it confusing to navigate. I grabbed my map and started examining it. I walked in a direction, hoping it was correct to where we needed to go. It was evident that no one had been in the warehouse for a number of years. The path led us into a room, which lit up when we walked into it. An orb filled the entire room with one small door to open it. Several different passcodes were required to deactivate the entire orb. I knew the tracker jacker serum was contained here. I delicately opened the door to find several large tubes full of a neon liquid. Carefully I took one tube and placed it into a metal container. I put it into a titanium box that I brought in a sack.

I smiled and said, "Mitchell, everything from now on is going to be just all right." We proceeded back to the office and dropped the serum off for testing. I grabbed a tube that could house a sample of the material and placed it in a safe place in my office. I walked to Mr. Markaz's office and said, "I might need some time off to visit my mother in Ashland in about a week." I thought about Katniss and how I couldn't wait to be near her again. Everything _will_ be all right soon enough.


End file.
